Luminescence
by Angelic Candy
Summary: Harry and Draco end up working at the same place and unwittingly become partners. The mystery around Draco deepens and Harry finds himself drawn into it. Their relationship begins to take an unexpected turn. As more is revealed, Harry soon realizes just how much Draco has come to mean to him. H/D
1. Prologue

_**Luminescence **_

**SYNPOSIS:** After defeating Voldemort, Harry finds that he doesn't know what he wants to do with his life. An opportunity arises for him, a potential job that's both dangerous and adventurous. However, Harry encounters more than a potential career; he bumps into Malfoy and begins to discover that Malfoy's situation is much worse than his. Harry and Malfoy's lives intertwine making for interesting and unexpected situations that ultimately begins to morph their heated rivalry into chemistry, altering their relationship.

**PAIRING: Harry/Draco**

_**WARNING:**_** Male sexual situations. If you don't feel comfortable reading that, please don't. **

_**Spoilers:**_** HP books1-7. Also, there are spoilers for the HP 7 movie Part 2. I loved the battle between Voldie and Harry in the movie more than what actually happened in the book, so I'm going to use that briefly. **

**Prologue: **

It was a crisp fall day when Harry stepped into his small one bedroom apartment. His apartment was located right on the edge of Scotland and England so he could be close to Hogwarts, in case he ever felt nostalgic and wanted to visit Dumbledore again, and also not too far from where the Weasleys were. After all, they were his second family, his only family now.

As Harry took his coat off and set it down on the table, he thought of Remus and Tonks again. He couldn't believe it had been three months already - three months since they died, and two months since the Hogwart's graduation ceremony. Harry still remembered holding his diploma, which magically changed colors, as he hugged Ron and Hermione and cheered with his other friends. They had thrown a feast in Harry's honor just before graduation to celebrate his defeat of Voldemort. He had never experienced that much attention all at once before. It had been overwhelming. A part of him didn't want to leave. He felt like he hadn't been able to enjoy everything Hogwarts offered because he had been so focused on surviving.

Sighing, Harry walked up to the bedroom where Hedwig lay curled up sleeping. She was getting old now and so she slept quite a bit. Harry didn't use her for errands anymore. He bought a brand new owl recently, a very young one that was a golden brown with streaks of red, which reminded him of Fawkes. He named him Sev, in memory of Snape. There was a picture of his parents and him as a baby on his nightstand. Alongside that was one of Remus, Tonks and baby Teddy. Thinking of Teddy brought back memories of the poor baby who had lost his parents in the war. Harry was probably the closest thing to family he had, but he had no way of taking care of him. If he was honest with himself, he didn't want to take care of a child.

In fact, despite wanting to carry on the Potter line so it wouldn't end with him, he wasn't sure he wanted children. He shook his head of the thoughts. Teddy had found a good home and had been adopted by friends of Mrs. Weasley. It was the best he could have hoped for. Mrs. Weasley said she would visit him. Harry had yet to visit the baby. The wound of losing Remus was still fresh.

A sound came at the window and Harry turned to see a large black and brown owl. Sighing, Harry opened the window. The bird dropped several letters with the Ministry seal on the back and after Harry gave him some coins and a cracker, he took off again. Harry closed the window and kicked the letters into the pile that had begun to form by his bed. The Ministry was trying so hard to employ him since he had graduated. He didn't want to become an Auror and he wasn't sure he wanted to work for the Ministry in any way. Harry just ignored them all. He had done his part; he had sacrificed a lot to stop Voldemort and had lost the remainder of the connection to his parents. He wanted to be left alone so he could figure out what he wanted to do with his life.

Harry decided to get some rest so he could forget about all that he had lost. He fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

The next morning, Harry headed to the Opaleye, a new restaurant that had recently opened in Hogsmeade. It was on the other side from where The Three Broomsticks was. As he stepped inside, he could tell instantly why it was so popular. The entire ceiling had been enchanted to look like a sunrise. Clouds were drifting across the ceiling to various parts of the restaurant. Suddenly, a figure appeared in the ceiling. It was an enormous dragon with pearly-white scales glimmering over its body. It flapped its scaly wings and then turned its body to stare at him. The eyes were multicolored – blue, green and magenta swirled together. It flew away and vanished.

"Harry!"

Turning, Harry saw Hermione waving at him from a table. He hurried over to the table where she and Ron were seated. Ron was eating what looked like fried dragon scales.

"That's not real is it?"

Ron swallowed and glanced down at his plate. "Blimey, no, Harry. They just make them look like dragon scales. They're really good, mate, you should try some."

"This is such a wonderful place," Hermione interjected. "Did you see the Antipodean Opaleye in the ceiling?"

"Is that the dragon?"

Hermione nodded. "That's the dragon this place was named after. It's one of the more rare dragons native to New Zealand. The last sighting was decades ago. They're practically extinct. I think the owners of this place support the Protect Our Scaly Friends company, or maybe it was the Dragon Protection Agency. I can't remember now."

She frowned, clearly upset that she wasn't sure about something. Harry just smiled.

"How have you two been?"

"Good. It's so nice to not have homework anymore," Ron said with a mouthful of food.

Suddenly, before Hermione could open her mouth a waiter appeared.

"May I get you anything?" he asked Harry.

"Er, do you have Butterbeer?"

"Sure do," he said grinning. "We have all kinds of flavors. And our specialty Butterbeers – our own recipes."

"Oh, er, I'd like to try one of the specialties."

"Wonderful choice! I would recommend the mocha raspberry fizz, or the ginger snap fizz. One of our top sellers is the sweet vanilla fizz."

"I'll try that one," Harry said.

The waiter nodded. "It will be out in a- blimey!" his eyes suddenly widened. Harry froze and glanced at Ron who was not-so-subtly pointing toward his forehead. "You're…you're Harry Potter!"

"Er, I'd appreciate it if you didn't let anyone else know."

"Yeah, poor Harry can never get a break from the press," Hermione said, giving him a sorrowful look.

The waiter just smiled and reached out to shake Harry's hand. "No problem, Mr. Potter, you can count on me."

With that, he apparated away and came back a minute later with Harry's Butterbeer. "Extra large on the house," he said.

Ron's eyes bugged out at the size of the large mug, at least twice the size of one of the larger mugs at Butterbeer.

Harry stared at it a little overwhelmed. "Er, thanks."

"Would any of you like anything else?"

"Er, no thanks," Harry said. He had eaten some eggs and toast that morning. Hermione also declined. Finally, the waiter vanished and Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

Harry stared down at his drink. It was foamy at the top and glimmered a little. He took a sip of the warm, relaxing beverage and was pleased to find that it was a subtle but sweet taste and it fizzed in his mouth like soda.

"So, Harry, have you decided what you want to do?" Hermione asked.

Harry sighed and shook his head. "No."

"Didn't you want to become an Auror?" Ron asked.

Harry took another sip and then shook his head. "To be honest, I never really had an interest. I only said that because at the time I was doing the best in my Dark Arts class and I figured that it was a logical job for me. Truthfully, it doesn't sound appealing at all, not after everything."

Hermione nodded and reached over to pat his hand gently. "I understand, Harry. You need a break. You've been through a lot; we've all been through a lot, but you especially. I'm sure you don't want to be fighting anymore."

"What about Quidditch?" Ron perked up.

Harry smiled. "Sorry, Ron, I love Quidditch, but I just think that I don't love it enough for it to consume my life like that, er, professionally that is. I don't know what I want to do."

"Well, what do you like to do?" Hermione asked, sipping her water.

Harry shrugged. "I don't know. I can't choose a class at Hogwarts, besides Defense Against the Dark Arts that I actually wanted to learn. Although Charms class was fun sometimes too."

Ron made a face. "Not for me."

Hermione scrunched her face in thought. "Well, it seems to me that you just love magic in general. It's a shame that you couldn't study sorcery like Dumbledore did."

"Sorcery?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, it's the study of all forms of magic. It requires continuous, in-depth research and practice. You have to mentor yourself basically through books. A lot of sorcery books were destroyed in the first war though. It doesn't do much for jobs these days either. If anything, you could work for the Ministry but it still requires some Auror training."

"Being an Auror isn't so bad. You get paid nicely," Ron said. "My dad got me a position in the Ministry as an assistant to the Department of Muggle Studies."

Ron didn't look thrilled. "He said it will be a good opportunity for me. I mean, being in the Ministry has great benefits, but it's so dull. I'd prefer to play Quidditch."

"You're trying out?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, I have been, but they still say I'm too amateur. Er, at least one league did. If that doesn't work out though, Charlie said I could get into dragon training!"

"Dragon training? Sounds brutal," Hermione said.

Ron gave her a look. "Not any more dangerous than Quidditch. I'd prefer fire to a bludger to the head. Besides, there's actually more money in dragon training now! Since dragons are still being hunted, though sparsely now, they've decided to protect them by putting them into competitions. And they show it live like a Quidditch game! It's like the Triwizard Tournament, except without the death and the dark lord."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Sounds promising. What do you do?"

Ron sat up in his seat. "Well, Charlie told me that the dragons that they have in protection breed and produce babies, of course, and then when they hatch he starts training them, you know, getting them used to humans. They get treated really well and they get to fly around huge areas and they have a charm cast upon them so they don't run away. They get lured back using magic too! And then there are these competitions where people ride dragons to race one another, and they even train them to do amazing things. People love it!"

"It sounds like you really want to do it," Harry said, "so you should just do that."

Ron nodded. "Charlie is trying to get me an interview right now. As soon as he does I'm going to Australia, that's where Charlie is right now. He moves around because they take the dragons and competitions to other parts of the world. Plus, the company also has a research department where they study all species of dragons and come out with books and stuff."

"That sounds interesting," Hermione said.

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance.

"Well, Harry, you'll just have to think of something you really want to do. Do some research on what's out there," Hermione suggested.

Harry felt disappointment wash over him. He didn't want to be lazy about it, but researching jobs didn't sound fun at all. And he had no idea what he was looking for anyway.

"Hey, you know, Neville just got a job in Herbology and he helped Dean get a job. Maybe the place he works for has openings. He might be able to help you too."

Harry felt a flutter of hope. "Yeah, that'd be great. I'll owl him tonight then."

"Perfect! Soon we'll all be in our own careers," Hermione said, smiling wistfully. "I can't wait to wait to start my apprenticeship at St. Gunhilda. I'm studying magical medicine, which includes analyzing potions and illnesses and even certain charms."

"Wow," Harry said. "I didn't know you were interested in medicine."

"Yeah, neither did I, but it makes sense. It requires a lot of study and research and expertise in potion making. I got good marks in potions, especially once Professor Snape was gone," she said with a humph. "Anyway, I love research and if I could help people, or maybe event my own synthesis of a potion to find the cure for something, that would be my dream! Just like Gunhilda."

"Who's Gundhilda?" Ron asked.

Hermione gave him a look and then glanced at Harry who shrugged. "Honestly! She's on a famous wizard card, you know. That's who the clinic is named after. She found the cure for Dragon Pox."

Ron shrugged. "Alright, well, we should be off. We're having dinner with the family. Er, you're welcome to join us Harry."

Harry suddenly felt out of place, staring at Ron's awkward expression for inviting him at the last minute. He knew why he hadn't had an immediate invitation.

"Er, it's alright, Ron."

Ron rubbed his neck sheepishly. "I would've invited you Harry, but I just didn't know if it would be awkward, you know, since you and Ginny broke up."

Harry nodded. "It's okay. Actually, I have to do some errands anyway, but maybe next time. Tell your mum and dad I said hi."

"I will."

Harry stood up having finished more than half of his butterbeer and feeling rather content. Ron and Hermione stood up as well.

"Take care of yourself, Harry. And don't be a stranger. Owl me anytime," Hermione said, giving him a hug.

"Me too," Ron said, smiling. "You know you can come over for Christmas. You're always welcome. And I'm sure Charlie and Bill would love to see you again."

"Thanks, that sounds great," Harry said, smiling.

He patted Ron on the back and then he took off to go home. He wanted to owl Neville right away. Sighing, he thought it was funny that he didn't feel that disappointed he wasn't invited to dinner. Perhaps it was because he usually went over there several times a month, or maybe because it would be awkward with Ginny there. They had broken up at the end of their sixth year for safety due to Voldemort, and then once Harry had defeated Voldemort Ginny approached him wanting to reunite. Harry cared about her a lot, but he knew she would want marriage and she just didn't seem…right. She was beautiful, smart, kind – a lot like his mother. Maybe that was why; she was too much like her. She even had red hair.

It was more than that though. Harry's attraction to her wasn't that strong anymore and he was afraid that if they got involved again and he continued to feel that way, then Ginny would really be hurt. Truthfully, Harry also knew that Mrs. Weasley would not only push for marriage, since she and Mr. Weasley had been married young, but then kids soon after that. Harry was definitely not ready for kids. He wanted kids, but he didn't feel ready, and he also felt like he only wanted them to keep his parents and his bloodline going. Was that a good enough reason to have kids? Wasn't that selfish?

When Harry got home he mailed his owl to Neville hoping that something good would come out of it. At least if he had a job opportunity it would give him something to do. He was going crazy out of boredom and not knowing what to do with his life.

Harry took a shower and slumped down on the bed. Hedwig flew over to him and landed next to him. He stroked her feathers gently.

"It's wrong to be bored, isn't it?" Harry said aloud to Hedwig, who just cocked her head curiously. "I mean, this is what I wanted, a normal life. I'm so happy to be alive and defeating Voldemort gave me such…relief and confidence in my future, but I just don't know what to do with myself. My fame is always going to be a nuisance, but I'd rather have that than Voldemort any day," Harry said, wincing at the horrible memories.

He still remembered Voldemort chasing him through Hogwarts, furious that he had survived the killing curse yet again. Little did Voldemort know that it was because of the Horcrux. He remembered Voldemort's cold hand on his throat, how his magic burned him as he was choked and bound by the black binds. Mostly, he remembered the look in Voldemort's eyes as their wands clashed for the last time. Watching Voldemort disintegrate had been both shocking and disturbing. He didn't feel the relief until the battle was over and the surviving Death Eaters fled.

"I can't believe it's over. It consumed my entire life at Hogwarts. I probably missed out on a lot there," Harry mused. "Bella died, thanks to Mrs. Weasley. There were casualties, but thankfully a lot of my friends survived. Strangely, even the Malfoys survived."

Harry remembered the Malfoys fleeing the scene together. Lucius and Narcissa had only been concerned about Draco at the time, and also surviving. He knew that the Ministry would still come after them, however, for their crimes of serving Voldemort. Lucius especially because he had attacked Harry, tried to kill him, and was responsible for helping Voldemort to power. Not to mention he had nearly killed Ginny. Harry hadn't thought about any of the Death Eaters since that day. He wondered how many Death Eaters the Ministry had caught. So far, he had been ignoring the Minister and any Ministry members' owls to him.

Harry lay down in his bed and thought about Hogwarts. He missed those days. He missed Hagrid. He didn't get to visit him much, or at least he hadn't been motivated to go there more than a handful of times since graduation. It brought back so many memories. Harry was envious of the students there who would get to enjoy Hogwarts at its fullest with no war or fear or evil professors, like Umbridge and even Snape.

Thinking about Snape brought back a painful twinge for the older man. He had not only been a spy for Dumbledore the whole time, having carefully kept his feelings and memories locked away from Voldemort, but he sincerely cared about Harry. He had treated Harry so badly that it wasn't obvious at all. The saddest part was that Snape had been in love with his mom, Lily – so in love that he protected her even when she was married and with a baby; so in love that he never married or gave his heart to anyone else and that saddened him. Harry didn't even get a chance to say goodbye or start over with Snape after he learned the truth; he was already dead.

Then his thoughts strayed to a place he thought they wouldn't go: to Voldemort. What had really happened to him? Did he turn into that _thing_ that Harry saw when he visited Dumbledore in limbo? Was Voldemort unable to move on to join his mother, his family, and stay in limbo for all eternity? Harry shuddered at the thought. Voldemort had conquered death, but that was his reward. He got his eternity, but it would be forever alone, forever powerless, and maybe even in agony. Death was much more merciful than that. When Harry had been prepared to die in the Forbidden Forest, with his parents' ghosts, along with Sirius and Remus, death wasn't so scary. He would get to see them again and have a second chance with them in the afterlife.

He was so grateful that he was alive, that he had his friends, and that the Potter blood wasn't gone yet. At the same time, he was missing something. What was it? Maybe it was just that he hadn't found his place in the world. Or maybe he really wanted to find his soulmate, like his parents had found each other. He wasn't sure exactly why he wasn't entirely happy, but he knew that he wouldn't stop searching until he found it.

**XXXXXXXXX**

A couple days later Harry received a reply from Neville:

_Harry,_

_I'm glad to hear from you! It's been a while. I'm sorry to hear you're still having trouble deciding what you want to do. Actually, it's good that you contacted me. I'm working for a herbology company called Heleborey who just expanded with another company that specializes in environmental research. They're looking for some new people to hire to fill in the position of their researchers. I know they would most definitely love to meet with you, not just because you're Harry Potter, but you fit their credentials. They need someone who's very magically advanced but also someone not afraid of challenges. I think you'd be perfect! I already spoke to the head of the Department of Herbology Research. His name is Dimitri Sage and he's already looking forward to interviewing you. Hopefully, you're available tomorrow around eleven. If not, you can contact him directly and set up another time. Good luck, Harry!_

_Neville _

Harry couldn't believe it. Neville was a lifesaver. He immediately went out to buy a nice formal outfit one with a white button down shirt and collar, and a nice pair of black work pants. He thought a tie would be a little too formal for a research department so he decided against it.

The next day when he showed up at the large multi-story building he found that the lobby had elevators like the Ministry building. They were much simpler and only went to their designated floors. Harry looked at the floor map glimmering on the stone floor as he walked in. He found that the Department of Herbology Research was on the third floor.

He went into the elevator and pushed the button. Suddenly, a person's hand shot through the elevator doors and Harry jumped, whipping out his wand from inside his robe. The doors opened and a young boy, probably younger than Harry by a couple years, walked in. The boy had glasses like him, but they were thick plastic-rimmed glasses. Harry had the simple thin-rimmed glasses with black frames that Remus had gotten him last Christmas. The boy glanced up at him as he entered and didn't smile.

"Sorry, I'm running late."

Harry just nodded and put his wand back in his robe. Feeling nervous about the interview, Harry wrung his hand through his hair, messing up his bangs and then straightening them out.

"You!"

Harry turned and felt his stomach flip when he saw the look the young boy was giving him. It was then he realized what he had done. Wringing his hand through his hair had revealed his scar.

"You're Harry Potter!"

"Er…," Harry just stood there uncertainly. He really wished he hadn't let him on.

"I'm Cyprian Hengist," he said holding out his hand.

His expression was now one of excitement and Harry reluctantly shook his hand. "Er, hi."

He blinked, suddenly recognizing his last name.

"Are you related to Hengist of Woodcroft?" Harry asked curiously.

Cyprian grinned. "Yes, he was my great, great, great, however many, grandfather. He was the founder of Hogsmeade. My family still owns Hogsmeade, or at least the main village which my ancestor founded. We're still trying to bring in more and more business. Our goal is to expand it so that it takes over Knockturn Alley. We want to replace all those horrible useless shops with some good ones. Anyway, that's what my parents mainly do. I work here for the Department of Herbology Research."

Harry glanced at him surprised.

"It looks like you're going to the same place. Do you have an interview?"

Harry nodded.

"Wonderful! I know you'll get in!"

The doors thankfully opened and they both stepped out. Cyprian walked alongside him talking to him about the department.

"I know where Dimitri's office is so I'll take you to him. I assume you're going to do the outside research."

"Outside research?" Harry asked.

Cyprian smiled and adjusted his glasses. "Oh yes, I'm a researcher who compiles all the data and turns them into books which we sell in volumes based on our years of research. We always come out with a new volume of up-to-date changes and information about any new plants or species of plants that we've discovered. I stay here in the department and compile all the information while a team of wizards and witches actually goes out there to collect the data. That's probably what you'll be doing which is disappointing because that means I'll only see you when you bring back the data after an assignment."

Harry nodded awkwardly as Cyprian stopped in front of an office door. Dimitri Sage's name was gleaming on the door.

"Er, thanks."

"No problem, Harry. Hope to see you around."

With that Cyprian grinned and turned to walk away. Harry breathed a sigh of relief once he was gone. He knocked on the door and in a matter of seconds it flung open on its own.

"Come in, come in. Is that you Mr. Potter?"

"Er, yes, sir," Harry said.

He heard a chuckle from somewhere nearby. "So polite. Well, I shouldn't expect anything less from you. You may take a seat."

Harry walked in staring at the large office with a marble floor, a simple brown rug that seemed to change designs magically, a tall slanted ceiling, and several plush chairs situated before a large black desk. Dimitri was sitting at the desk sipping a cup of tea. Harry sat down in one of the chairs across from him.

"Welcome, Mr. Potter. Neville has told me a great deal about you. He is one of our top researchers. He says that you taught him very well," Dimitri said, smiling.

Harry smiled back and nodded. "Er, yeah we grew up together. He taught me a lot as well."

"So humble you are, Harry," Dimitri said. "I like that about you. Not at all like the papers describe you. Of course Rita Skeeter changes her opinion every day so I scarcely believe anything she says. Tell me, Harry, what is it that brought you to consider our department?"

"Well, sir, I have been searching for what I might want to do, as a career, and Neville suggested that I might enjoy your department because it requires advanced magical training and it's challenging. Those are some of my strong suits," he said as he had rehearsed the night before. "I was top in my class in Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"Yes, your defeat of the Dark Lord proved that much," Dimitri said grinning as his eyes gleamed brightly.

"Yes, er, and I was considering becoming an Auror in my fifth year, but I've decided against that."

"Ah, yes, it probably reminds you too much of your battles with the Dark Lord and his army."

Harry blinked realizing that it was very much true. The man seemed to understand where he was coming from.

"So you're uncertain exactly what you want to do then?" Dimitri asked putting his hands together thoughtfully.

Harry nodded. "Yes, sir, but I'm very dedicated to anything I put my mind to. I love magic, any kind of magic really, and I do like the idea of having to go out and explore the wizard world and its type of magical plants and species."

"Ah, so someone told you already what you might be encountering here," he said smiling. "The wizard world you say? Ah yes, you grew up in the muggle world didn't you?"

Harry nodded hesitantly. "Yes, sir, I'm half muggle."

"Ah yes, of course, I remember that now," he said taking another sip of tea. "So you're curious to get to know this world that your other half comes from. Sort of like a search for your identity."

Harry grimaced at the exaggeration but he just nodded. "Yes, I guess so."

Dimitri smiled. "Well, I think you've come to the right place. As I'm sure Neville told you, we specialize in plant and environmental studies. We come out with volumes on the observations and personal encounters with these plants and environmental species," he said taking out a book from his shelf and floating it down to him.

Harry glanced at the golden cover page which gleamed at him _Volume Five: Plants with Healing Properties. _

"We are a rather new and up-and-coming company. You see, there has been research out there on plants and their useful properties, such as in potions and whatnot, but much of the information is scattered and incomplete. My family created this company years ago, back before the Dark Lord first appeared, and it was when my father discovered a unusual property of the Helebore plant on his explorations. Anyway, he loved Herbology and read every book he could get his hands on, but many of the books were either vague or contradictory. You see, not many people actually take the time to go out and explore the plants in their natural environment to see what defenses they might have, or how they thrive, or even what they could possibly do for us. That's why we collect samples. We never endanger the plants or their environments, you see, we're just observers out to seek the truth. However, when in the field we require small samples to be taken so that our researchers back here can not only compile the information our teams observe out there in the wild, but also they test the properties in various potions and with various spells to see all the possibilities that a plant or plant species might possess. We are very thorough.

"You, Harry, have come at a most crucial time. We have been trying to hire people for our next volume, which is going to be called _Dangerous and Carnivorous Plants."_

Harry immediately realized why they thought he would be perfect for the job. It required some amount of danger or risk and since he had battled Voldemort numerous times they probably thought it would be easy for him.

"We are not trying to endanger your life at all, but there are species of plants out there that can be just as lethal as some nefarious creatures. Not many people are brave enough to venture out into the wild to observe these plants and get close enough to get a sample. You see, that's why we need you. We need to know what these plants are capable of and we need samples to see how beneficial they can be in a potion. Some of these more dangerous plants could provide cures for things like people who have been obliviated, or those whose minds have been altered. There were many casualties from the war, both of them, and many are still in St. Mungos or living their lives differently because there was only so much that could be done. We could really change the world with our research."

Harry nodded.

"Now, I will pay you a substantial amount for your service, Harry. I understand that there are some risks involved and some assignments can take weeks to finish in order to collect data. There are some spells I will teach you, not that you need to be taught, but they become useful in seeing what defenses and offenses a plant species might possess. Also, you will be provided specially charmed vials that will keep any samples you collect fresh no matter how long it takes you to complete an assignment. You will get your assignments by mail from me and you only have to come in to bring your samples and the observations you note, and also of course to receive your pay for that assignment. I will give you a guide sheet that you can take with you. It has questions about the types of things you should be watching for in your observations.

"Oh yes, and just so you're aware, we have a couple other people that we have hired recently. We usually have two people working on the same assignment because we like to make sure our observations aren't just a fluke. Sometimes other people encounter different situations with the same plant so we like to make sure our information is complete. This does not at all make your findings inferior or incomplete, you understand, we just like to be thorough. I just wanted you to know because sometimes when your assignments overlap you may run into teammates. You are welcome to work alongside anyone you wish, or you can do things independently. It's your choice. Most of the time, however, you will have different assignments from the other outside researchers. Do you have any questions?"

"Er, none that I can think of, sir."

Dimitri nodded. "Wonderful! I think you're perfect for the job so you have now been hired! I shall give you your first assignment today. You can start as early as tomorrow. There is no real time limit on these assignments, although our goal is to finish each volume by the end of the year so we have at least one that comes out every year. I have already prepared your first assignment, and here's the sheet for your observations and the spells to use to aid you," he said, handing Harry several documents. "I look forward to working with you, Mr. Potter."

Harry shook his hand and left the office feeling relieved yet overwhelmed. He was to start at early as the next day. The job didn't sound particularly difficult although it would depend on what sort of plants he was asked to encounter. Harry waited until he got back home before he opened the assignment letter.

_**Assignment One: Venomous Tentacula **_

_**This species of plant has spiky, dark red vines that can ensnare a person. It is in the same family as Devil's Snare, only the black circular spots on its vines are venomous, hence its name. What we don't know is exactly what happens when the black spots gets too close to a person. How does the poison seep out? That is one thing you will want to watch out for. **_

_**Also, we don't know much of its defenses if it's attacked, or even its vulnerabilities. This plant has been unable to be studied because no one has dared to get close enough to take samples. Their seeds have been used in potions before but they are extremely hard to come by. One must go into the wild and find ones that have been dormant from winter but haven't awoken yet. On its vines it will have produced some seeds in place of its poison but it's been in short supply for a long time. It would be most beneficial if you could retrieve a section of the plant that has a black venomous spot on it so that we may research the type of poison it produces. The only reason we know it is venomous is because an old researcher back in the day saw his friend get killed by it and barely escaped. There is not much else we know about this plant. **_

_**Please discover its defenses, offenses, and especially its vulnerabilities. If you can find samples of ones that have just started growing, the less mature ones, so that we may see how it grows that would be an extra, which you will certainly be rewarded for. From what we do know, one area it may reside in is the Wellesley Islands in Australia. It likes to live in very deeply dense clusters of forests, but they are very good at hiding. We believe that it likes to be near water as well. **_

_**Best of luck,**_

_**Dimitri**_

Harry stared down at the letter with raised eyebrows. They weren't starting him off easy, that was for sure. He cringed at the memory of Devil's Snare. So this plant was like Devil's Snare only venomous, which made it worse than Devil's Snare. That meant that perhaps it didn't have the same vulnerabilities as Devil's Snare. He would have to get a train ticket to get as far as he could and then he would have to rent a flying car. The flying car would probably take him to the islands but then he would need his broom to fly around and search for the plant. It would be a very long trip, but he knew the money would be good. Most of all the experience would help him figure out what he might want to do with the rest of his life.

Harry wrote letters to Ron and Hermione, telling them the good news, and then a thank you letter to Neville. Feeling as though things were looking up, Harry decided he would take on the assignment the following morning. He packed some of his potions that he thought might be useful on the trip, and studied the spells that Dimitri had given him. Just as he was getting undressed for bed a beautiful bronze-feathered owl appeared in the window. Harry let the large bird in and Hedwig watched it carefully. It was carrying a letter with a golden seal on the back – the Minister's seal. Harry paid the bird and watched it fly away before he opened the letter.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_I hope this finds you in good health. It has been a while. I don't mean to trouble you, for I know that you have probably gotten numerous letters from members here at the Ministry. However, I must inform you that your presence would be greatly appreciated at an upcoming ceremony being held in your honor. The other Ministry members and myself have felt that you have sacrificed so much for your age, and have been through such an ordeal ever since you were a child, that you deserve acknowledgement for your struggles. _

_We would like to award you with a gift and celebrate the fact that our world is now looking toward brighter days, thanks to you. This celebration is in two weeks and I thought I would give you a heads up. It will be taking place here at the Ministry in front of other members of the Order and Ministry. I hope to see you then. _

_Best regards,_

_Minister Shaklebolt_

Harry smiled. He was very grateful that Kingsley Shaklebolt had become the next Minister after Scrimageour was killed. There was no better nor courageous man than Kingsley. He had helped protect Harry on numerous occasions. He hadn't seen the man since the Battle of Hogwarts. That's what it was being called now. Already there had been numerous articles about that night, and Harry's defeat of Voldemort. He just wanted to put everything behind him, but perhaps this celebration would be the closure he needed.

The next morning Harry was up early, making sure that Hedwig and Sev had plenty of food and water before he left. The trip to Australia was a long one. Despite having a magic train, it took a few hours before he reached the platform in which he then transferred to a flying car. The driver of the car was so ecstatic to have him aboard he nearly got caught flying into a building by muggles. Thankfully, he kept the invisibility shield intact. Harry fell asleep part way through the car ride.

"Here you are, Mr. Potter! Oh, by the way, may I have your autograph?"

Harry signed his name on the back of a Daily Prophet article, paid him, and then got on his broom. The Wellesley Islands were very stunning; he passed over large hills covered in forestry. He had no idea where to start searching. Harry flew for a while until he saw something interesting. It was a large area of land, completely isolated and without any buildings, or homes. There were clusters of forests and just beyond it was a lake or a pond. It was the perfect place to start.

Harry dove down toward the area at a high speed, feeling the rush of adrenaline like when he used to play Quidditch. He dove down toward the trees, making sure to dodge any tall branches. He saw the body of water in the distance and immediately sped forward.

Suddenly, something came in his peripheral vision but he was too slow to react. The object came flying at him from his left and struck him head-on. Harry was flung off his broom and managed a quick levitation spell just before he hit the ground. He groaned loudly, but thankful that nothing was broken. He slowly picked himself up and cursed loudly when he saw that his broom was nowhere to be found. He tried to call it with his wand to no avail.

"Godamnit!"

Harry turned, startled at the sound of another voice. He walked over through some trees and saw that there was another broom dangling from a tree. It had a large crack down the middle of it which meant it would be of no use. Harry stopped when he saw another body, a male figure standing up wiping off his clothes. Thankfully it appeared to be another wizard. Perhaps it was another teammate like Dimitri had mentioned. If it was, Harry certainly made a bad first impression.

"Er, sorry about that, I didn't see you."

The man whirled around and Harry's jaw immediately opened in shock. The all-too-familiar gray-blue eyes narrowed the moment they laid on him.

"Malfoy!" Harry blurted out, his eyes wide and disbelieving.

Moving his blond bangs out of his face, Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "Potter! What the hell are you doing here?"

"_Me_? What are you doing here? I'm here on business."

Malfoy's expression turned sour. "Don't tell me you were sent here by Dimitri."

Harry gapped. "Wait, you're…you work for Dimitri too!"

Malfoy cursed and brushed off his jeans. "Just my luck!"

Harry stared at him, not having seen him since the Battle of Hogwarts. He remembered seeing Malfoy looking so defeated that day with his parents. Harry had recently saved his life that day as well. Flashes of memories came at him of the times Malfoy's cold exterior had been down: the time he was crying in the bathroom and then the time he was crying when attempting to kill Dumbledore. The night Voldemort had nearly taken over Hogwarts, Malfoy was looking so pale and fearful; it wasn't like him. He was looking more like the old Malfoy now, scowling and cursing. His tone didn't have as much hatred to it like when they were growing up together, but he still seemed very cold and distant.

"Did you get the Venomous Tentacula assignment?" Harry asked.

Malfoy gazed up at him and then rolled his eyes. "Obviously, Potter. Where the hell is my—fuck!"

Malfoy's eyes widened when he saw his broken broom. "Fuck, Potter, look what you did!"

Harry instantly felt his anger boil. "It wasn't my fault! You came out of nowhere! Why didn't _you_ see me and get out of the way?"

"Because your fat head was too big to escape!" Malfoy snapped. "How the hell am I supposed to do my job and get out of here without a broom?"

"I can just get mine and…," Harry trailed off as he felt his throat constrict. "Oh shit."

Malfoy just stared at him. "What now, Potter? You lost your mind as well."

"My broom, it flew off! I don't know where it is! I can't even call it!"

"It's probably broken like my broom, Potter, because of your brilliant flying moves!"

"Shit!" Harry exclaimed, wringing his hands through his hair. "Maybe if we send up sparks someone will see it."

"What, like some muggle? We're miles from any town anyway!" Malfoy snapped.

Harry just stood there dumbfounded. Not only was he working in the same department and on the same assignment as Malfoy, but now he was in the middle of nowhere on an island, stranded with Malfoy.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note: **Hey guys, I'm back! I know it's been a while! I haven't had much time to do fanfiction because of school and work, but I'm attempting to do this story. I should have a chapter out each week, as long as I'm not swarmed with homework. This story I hope will have a similar feel to Captivation and Pure Rhapsody with a bit of its own uniqueness.

As you guys know from my other stories, the romance progresses gradually to make it believable. I estimate that the actual romance will start by chapter 7 or 8, but in the meantime there will be situations leading up to it that are just as important. They do need to bond a little first, hehe! I will try to update as quickly and as often as possible!


	2. The First Assignment

_**Luminescence **_

**Chapter One: The First Assignment**

It seemed like they had been walking forever. It was hot and muggy and Harry was quite certain that his life was cursed. They had been hiking through the trees in an attempt to get to higher ground to figure out which way was the way back into town. Malfoy pushed past another bunch of branches and they whacked Harry in the face as he approached. He cursed and then pushed them out of the way. He was certain Malfoy did that on purpose.

"There's your broom, Potter," Malfoy said, gesturing with his arm.

Harry turned to see shards of broom scattered across the soil. One piece was dangling from a bush. Gritting his teeth, Harry trudged forward. That was the broom Sirius had given him – the Firebolt. He hadn't had a chance to buy a new broom, not that he had needed one. Since he wasn't playing Quidditch professionally, only occasionally with Ron and Ginny and others for fun, he didn't need a brand new one. A part of him wondered if it was good that he didn't have a reminder of Sirius. It was just a material object anyway; he still had the good memories of his Godfather. Ever since he had seen his parents and Sirius and Remus due to the Resurrection Stone's power he felt he had gotten some peace and closure from losing his parents, and Sirius and Remus who had become like family to him as well.

Harry snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed Malfoy had suddenly stopped. They hadn't even reached the top of the tall hill yet.

"Why are you stopping?"

Malfoy knelt down and Harry walked around him to see what he was looking at. There was a trail of red slime glimmering on a few stray leaves. It was barely noticeable yet somehow Malfoy had spotted it.

"Could that be…?"

Frowning, Malfoy pointed his wand at it and murmured: _revelus invisa_. Harry had never heard that spell before. The red slime suddenly turned purple and then back again.

"It definitely came from a magical creature, or some type of magic at least," Malfoy said finally.

"Wait, how can you tell?"

Malfoy glanced up at him and raised an eyebrow. "Because it turned purple."

"Er…and that means…?"

Malfoy gave him a dumbfounded look. "Potter, how is it that you managed to save the world on so little knowledge of magic?"

The sarcasm in his voice was enough to make Harry's blood boil. Malfoy was still as irritating as ever.

"Just because I haven't heard all the spells ever used doesn't make me stupid, Malfoy," Harry retorted. "Now just tell me what that was."

Rolling his eyes, Malfoy sighed. "It was an advanced charm spell that's used to reveal any sort of magic being used. If there's a barrier, like a shield, the spell won't necessarily work, especially not right away or by one caster. It's mostly meant to reveal hexes or magical properties. This slime here must be residue from the plant we're looking for. Venomous Tentacula often times will leak from its vines when it's humid or really hot outside. It leaves traces of magic in it because it's a magical plant. Is that clear enough for you, Potter?"

Harry raised both eyebrows. "You sure seem to know a lot about this plant even though Dimitri said there's not much concrete research on it."

"There's basic information on it Potter. It's basic Herbology to know that many species of magical plants, like the Devil's Snare, often times will seep its magical juices in this kind of weather. Since the plant is in the Devil's Snare family, its basic structure is the same even if its defenses and vulnerabilities are not, so it's just plain common sense," Malfoy drawled.

"I didn't realize Herbology was your thing," Harry said sarcastically. He really hated that Malfoy was trying to make him look bad, as if he could possibly know everything about magic and wizard world.

Malfoy just smirked. "There's a lot you don't know about me, Potter. Anyway, this spell is a _very advanced_ spell. It usually takes two years just to perfect it and it only took me one."

"You're lying," Harry said. "How could it take that long for one spell?"

"Obviously because this spell requires immense concentration, adequate power, and careful pronunciation. It's a combination of a charm and a spell, that's why. Now, I came out here to do a job and get paid big bucks so I'm finding this plant."

With that, Malfoy headed in the direction where the slime was leading. Harry followed him, knowing full well that he wasn't going to let Malfoy take all the credit for his first assignment.

"Don't get in my way, Potter."

"This is my assignment too, Malfoy, and if I recall Dimitri said that I could work with a partner or by myself."

Malfoy snorted. "I prefer to work by myself."

"Well so do I, but we can't help that we're both here so just deal with it."

They both fell into an uncomfortable silence as they followed the bits of trail left behind by the venomous plant. The trail was barely noticeable after some hiking through the trees. Harry noticed that they were getting into the immensely thick part of the forest. It was cooler there but also there were hills around there covered in the thick trees. Malfoy kept using the revealing spell. Harry thought it was just to show off that he knew such an advanced spell, but suddenly they saw something glow white behind a tangle of green-leaf ivy. Behind the ivy was a small cavern that they both could just barely squeeze through.

"They like dark places like Devil's Snare," Harry murmured.

"Yeah I noticed," Malfoy drawled.

Harry bit his lip so he wouldn't retort. This was no time for an argument. They had their wands out for light and they both kept a close eye out. There was nothing on the ground or on the walls of the cavern. The trail had ended and Harry wasn't even sure if the plant was in there or not. The cavern wasn't very big and they ended up at a dead end in a small expansion of room. Harry did notice that it was by the lake and there were some cracks in the wall where water was trickling in.

"Well, maybe there's another cavern we could—"

"Fuck!" Malfoy interrupted, suddenly pointing his wand in Harry's direction.

Harry's eyes widened but before he could utter a sound Malfoy sent a hex flying. Harry dodged it, thinking it was meant for him, and found himself moving right into one of the vines of the Venomous Tentacula, which had been hovering behind him.

Harry made a sound of surprise as he was suddenly lifted off the cave floor. The plant had stuck itself on the cavern ceiling and that was why they couldn't see it. Harry was hanging upside down, just about to lose his glasses, and he thankfully freed an arm to make sure they didn't fall.

"Ahhhhh! Shit!" Malfoy exclaimed.

Harry turned his head and saw a red vine wrapping around Malfoy's leg. It encircled his body so he couldn't move and lifted him several inches off the ground. Malfoy cursed and attempted to thwart the vine with a hex. The vine shriveled a bit as if wincing and then went right back to tightening its grip on them.

"Malfoy! We have to find its vulnerabilities."

"No shit!" he exclaimed.

The vine thankfully pulled him so he wasn't dangling upside down but was in a lying position staring up at the vine. Its base was a throbbing red mass and from it extended five vines, two of which had them both trapped. The others were sticky and up against the ceiling. One of the other vines from the ceiling slunk down toward Harry. He attempted to free his wand hand with his free hand. The vine seemed to bulge and suddenly a black spot appeared on it. Harry's entire stomach felt like it turned to lead. The black spot pulsed and then opened up slowly. A thin, black tentacle came out and on the end of it was a small needle, almost like a stinger. Harry had no doubt that there was poison on the end of it. The needle started coming toward him straight at his face and Harry struggled to avoid it.

Suddenly, a burst of flames distracted the vine as it shriveled and pulled back the needle. The flames didn't make it lose its grip on them though. Instead, the vine around Malfoy tightened and the tip of it began wrapping around his throat. Malfoy put up a hand toward his throat so it wouldn't choke him. He was unable to use his wand at the moment though. Harry realized that the plant could only focus on one target at a time.

"Damnit!" Malfoy cursed as another vine tore down from the ceiling and approached Malfoy.

Harry gripped the vine with his free hand and managed to squeeze his wand hand out. Malfoy was attempting to turn his head away as a black spot revealed a needle coming at him. Harry had to think fast. If flames didn't work then perhaps another element would.

"Aquinus!" Harry shouted, spraying water on it.

The vine was again distracted and this time began to swell as it apparently absorbed the water. Harry's eyes widened. If it absorbed water then that meant…

Harry was suddenly thrown off guard as the needle was directed at him again. This time he had his wand free and he shouted a hex. It sliced into the vine, cutting off the tip of it. The vine seemed to thrash and Harry did it again, slicing off the part with the black spot and needle. Both parts fell to the floor of the cavern where they squirmed helplessly.

"It can't focus on both of us at the same time," Harry said.

Malfoy's jaw was clenched when he spoke. "That's fantastic, Potter. Got any other useless facts?"

The needle was sticking out and approaching Malfoy again. Harry shouted a hex that freed him from the vine's grasp. He shouted the water spell again and ran to Malfoy to help him out.

"Potter, move! Let me curse it!"

"Malfoy, hold still, I'm trying to get you out!"

The blond struggled even as Harry attempted to help him.

"Look out!"

Harry didn't even have time to react as the vine around Malfoy suddenly split off into two sections from the tip, as if a new vine was growing right out of it. It wrapped around Harry and slammed the two of them together, lifting them higher off the ground. Harry and Malfoy were now facing one another, both of their bodies crushed together. Their chests were touching but otherwise their faces were just inches apart.

"Shit! Malfoy, listen to me, you have to hex it with a wind spell, something to dry it up with. It absorbed water which means that it probably has similar weaknesses to water, and since water can evaporate—"

"Okay, I get it," Malfoy snapped. He pointed his wand at it and shouted a spell. Harry's eyes widened when he realized what spell Malfoy had used: it was a tornado spell.

The vine was swallowed up in the swirling wind, releasing them from its grasp, but at the same time they were both thrown onto the ground by the force. Harry covered his face as the wind thrashed above them. It finally died down after a couple of minutes. The Venomous Tentacula dropped from the ceiling to the ground, landing on top of them. Harry instantly squirmed out of its grip, thankful that it was all dried up and not very hard to escape. Harry grabbed a vial from his pocket and levitated the piece of the vine with the black spot that was still squirming on the ground. It had gotten blown up against the cavern wall but thankfully was still in one piece. The spell had been pointed directly at the main vine on the ceiling so it hadn't ruined the pieces on the ground.

Harry turned after he sealed the vial to see Malfoy brushing himself off.

"A tornado spell?" Harry blurted out.

Malfoy gazed at him and glared. "I had five seconds to think, Potter, be glad that I didn't let the plant impale you first."

Harry rolled his eyes. Malfoy caught sight of the specimen piece in the vial and Harry pocketed it.

"Don't we need more than one sample?"

"Er…," Harry stared down at the dried up corpse of the vine. "I'm sure it could be useful even dead. You should take a sample of it."

Malfoy scowled but reached down and collected a sample. "Fine. Let's get out of this place. I need a nice long shower and a Butterbeer."

Harry didn't want to admit it but that sounded like a great idea. They walked out of the cavern covered in dirt and grime. Harry decided to levitate himself in the air just to see and he was able to determine which direction they should go.

"Okay, it's that way," Harry said pointing as he dropped back down.

"Let's go. There's no telling how long it will take on foot."

The two of them remained silent for most of the way, except for when Malfoy cursed every time he had trouble getting through a particular tangle of bushes. Thankfully, they hadn't run into any other magical creatures. They did some birds but otherwise they were just surrounded by plants. After walking for what had to be at least a half hour, Harry realized that the sky was darkening; the sun was beginning to set.

"Are we going to make it before dark?" Harry asked aloud.

Malfoy huffed as he climbed over a fallen tree. "How should I know?"

Harry glared at the back of his head, irritated that Malfoy wasn't being very helpful. It was bad enough that he was sweating and miserable but the least Malfoy could do was answer a simple question without sarcasm or attitude. They continued to walk on in more silence and it started to get much darker as the sun lowered in the horizon.

"Damnit!" Malfoy cursed. "There's no way we're going to make it."

Harry looked around. "Well, maybe there's a safe place to stay the night somewhere."

"Potter, look around, we're in the wilderness. There aren't any safe places."

Feeling hungry and irritated, Harry finally snapped: "Quit whining and just cooperate Malfoy! We obviously have to find some place because walking in the dark is just as dangerous. Besides, we need sleep to keep up our energy. We just need a few hours; it's not like we have to camp until the sun comes up."

"Camp?" Malfoy questioned, turning around to face him. It was obviously a muggle term that he wasn't familiar with, but Harry was in no mood to explain.

"Never mind."

Malfoy just narrowed his eyes, but didn't question further. They continued walking until Harry stopped him so he could levitate to see where there might be a good place. While up in the air, Harry saw that they still had a few miles of walking and there was no way he would make it without some sleep. He noticed that to the left of where they had to go there was a small river running toward a small pond.

"Hey there's some water over there. That way we can get cleaned up and cool off."

Malfoy nodded in agreement, looking weary. They both walked about a half mile to the pond. Harry immediately took off his shirt and went to splash water on his face. As he did so the water cascaded down his neck and onto his chest. He sighed with relief. He heard a splash and turned to see Malfoy had taken off his shirt as well. His pale chest was glistening with sweat. Instead of splashing water on himself like Harry did, he just waded straight into the pond with his pants on. It made no difference if they got wet since it was so hot out. Harry stared at the water, wondering if he should do the same. He still didn't know how to swim really well, but Malfoy was able to stand up in the water. Finally, Harry decided to follow suit. He slowly lowered himself into the water gripping the shore edge until he felt his feet hit the sand. Unfortunately, he was hoping Malfoy wouldn't notice, but of course the blond had turned to watch him.

"What are you so afraid of, Potter? It's not like there are Kappa Demons swimming around."

Harry felt his cheeks heat up instantly. He splashed his face, hoping that Malfoy couldn't tell he was embarrassed.

"I'm not afraid. I just didn't want to get my pants wet, but it's too damn hot."

Malfoy snorted, seeming to believe his answer. The blond then dunked himself under water. Harry tipped his head back to get his hair wet and stood up just as Malfoy resurfaced.

Harry looked around and noticed that there was plenty of open grass next to the pond. There was some dirt scattered about but for the most part it wasn't bad.

"We could sleep here near the water and build a fire," Harry said.

"We should really find shelter Potter in case there are wild animals."

They locked eyes and Harry shrugged. "Well, we could always cast a spell to raise up the ground and sleep up higher."

Malfoy stared at him. "I suppose so. I just hope there aren't any flesh-eating slugs out here."

Harry recognized the creature; Hagrid had once complained about flesh-eating slugs getting into his cabbages. He wasn't sure just how dangerous they were, but they didn't sound friendly.

"Can they climb?"  
>Malfoy shrugged. "I don't know. Hopefully a fire will keep them away, if there are any. My main concern is food. I haven't eaten anything since lunch. Hopefully there's something around here."<p>

Harry nodded, but didn't comment. He would be fine without food for a night. After all, he had been starved by the Dursleys for years so he could go weeks without much food. The sun had now completely set turning the sky was a dark red. Thankfully it was a bit cooler. Harry cast a spell on the ground to make it so the area they slept on was about five feet off the ground. It was large enough for both of them to fit snugly and still have room for a fire if they needed it. Malfoy cast some simple protections on the area as well, much like Harry, Ron and Hermione had done in the woods during their search for the Horcruxes.

"I'm going to look for some possible food before it gets too dark," Malfoy said, standing up.

"Er, okay. I'll build a cool fire then."

Malfoy's looked startled, as if he seemed almost impressed that Harry knew how to charm a regular fire to produce a chill instead of heat. Harry knew it was advanced magic, but he had had to learn a lot for survival.

Malfoy nodded to him and then walked away. Harry wasn't concerned; he knew Malfoy could take care of himself. Standing up, Harry slipped back on his shirt now that he was dry and dug a circle with his wand, casting a spell so the fire wouldn't go outside the circle. Then he murmured _"incendio"_ to create the fire. The fire blazed to life but didn't go past the circle. He felt a rush of heat and then murmured the incantation _"frigus puteulanus_" and the blazing orange fire turned white. Harry instantly felt a nice cool breeze come from the fire every now and then; it was a refreshing relief from the humidity. He wiped the sweat from his forehead. Not only was he still hot, but that had taken a lot of energy and concentration to perform, as well as the spell to raise the earth. He knew that the more advanced the spells, the more it would take a toll eventually. Harry wondered what he would have done had he fought with Voldemort for a long time. Had Voldemort been immune to feeling weak or tired? It had seemed like Voldemort never slept, as if he didn't need it.

Shaking his head, Harry pushed the thoughts away. Voldemort didn't matter anymore; he was gone. After a while, Malfoy came trudging back. He sighed gratefully as he sat down in front of the cool fire.

"There wasn't anything but some grapes," he said, holding a small handful. He hesitated. "There's probably about five for each of us."

Harry felt the stirrings of appreciation toward Malfoy. The blond had actually thought to share with him. Perhaps the war had made Malfoy mature faster. Probably working for Voldemort had struck so much fear into him that it drove all of his insensitivity out. Harry often wondered what Malfoy had gone through when he joined Voldemort's ranks. It must have been terrifying. He remembered having a discussion with Ron a couple of times. Ron was convinced that Malfoy and his family joined of their own will, but he and Hermione weren't so sure. Harry always thought that his parents supported Voldemort since the beginning, but then again maybe Malfoy's parents had also been intimidated into joining from the start. He was quite sure that Malfoy hadn't wanted to be a part of that; the way he had been crying in the Hogwart's bathroom seemed proof of that.

"Oh, thanks, but actually I'm not hungry. You can eat them all."

Malfoy looked surprised but then shrugged and began munching on them. Harry could tell he was really hungry. Since Malfoy did Harry a favor by offering, Harry did him a favor by letting him have them all. Besides, Harry wouldn't be as hungry as Malfoy; he knew his body could handle going without food for a while. He watched Malfoy as the blond ate the rest of the grapes feeling a different emotion stir at the thought of Malfoy actually aiding him. First, Malfoy had saved him from being poisoned by the plant, then he had offered him food. Perhaps the arrogant Malfoy from Hogwarts was gone, or maybe Malfoy was finally showing his good side. Either way, Harry was beginning to think that being stranded with the blond wasn't as bad as he thought.

Harry transfigured a stick into a simple blanket and lay down on it. He stared up at the sky which had exploded with stars. It actually wasn't bad out there, it was rather peaceful. Harry folded his hands behind his head and relaxed. They had gotten the samples and data that they needed. Tomorrow they would be able to go back to the office, give the information and samples, and get paid. Harry had to admit, without Malfoy he wasn't sure how long it would have taken him to find the plant. There was no exact time limit on assignments, but the more assignments they did the more they would get paid.

Harry didn't really need the money, and he was sure Malfoy didn't either, but it was nice to have something to do. In fact, Harry wondered exactly why Malfoy had applied for the job. He just assumed he would inherit his money, marry some wealthy Slytherin girl, and continue in his family's footsteps. Malfoy didn't have a ring on his finger, and if he did get his inheritance why was he working at all? Not only that, but why a Herbology job? Harry didn't think Malfoy liked Herbology. He was rather curious to know what Malfoy wanted to do as a career. Maybe he was like Harry and just searching for something to do while he figured it out.

Closing his eyes, Harry drifted off to sleep rather quickly. He was dreaming something really nice when he was awoken by someone shouting his name. Harry blearily opened his eyes, realizing he fell asleep with his glasses on, and slowly raised himself up. What he saw confused him. Malfoy was standing up in a crouched position but wasn't moving. He was breathing heavily and it seemed like he was reaching down slowly. It was then Harry heard heavy breathing followed by a soft, low growl. Turning his head, Harry saw a massive figure hovering nearby them. It was illuminated by the fire enough that Harry could see the long snout, large wings and gleaming eyes. The dragon stared at them, entranced by the fire it seemed, but didn't make any move to attack. It was on the ground while they were on the earth that Harry rose up five feet, and yet the dragon still towered over them.

Harry put two and two together rather abruptly. Malfoy was reaching for his wand and that's why he was moving slowly.

"Malfoy, don't—"

Harry barely got the words out before the dragon released a tremendous roar and opened its jaws toward Malfoy. Malfoy's eyes were wide as he attempted to shout hexes at it. Harry jumped up, grabbing his wand, knowing that Malfoy had just pissed it off. Out of nowhere the dragon's tail whacked Harry so hard he flew off the edge and landed on the ground.

"Potter!"

Harry groaned as he turned over grateful that nothing was broken. Thankfully it wasn't that far of a drop but it took him off guard. The dragon roared and Harry could feel the ground trembling beneath him as he heard rocks cracking from the force of the beast. Harry realized that he couldn't see; his glasses had been thrown off of him. He searched frantically for them hearing Malfoy shouting hexes; the blond's voice sounded panicked. He could barely hear him over the roaring of the dragon but he knew that Malfoy needed help. His damn glasses! His wand also had fallen out of his hand when he fell.

"POTTER!"

Malfoy's found sounded strained and fearful. Harry's heart was pounding in his chest. He couldn't let Malfoy die; it would be all his fault if he couldn't find his damn wand! Harry heard the dragon again as it flapped its wings, letting out flames. He could feel the heat, but could barely see anything. Malfoy hadn't screamed for him again. Was he too late?

"Fuck! I need my wand!" Harry exclaimed desperately.

Suddenly, he felt something fly into his hand unexpectedly. His eyes snapped open realizing he had summoned his wand somehow.

"Accio glasses!"

His glasses flew right into his hands. They were cracked but he easily repaired them and threw them on his face. Since the dragon was obviously drawn to them by the magic fire, he wondered if he could distract the beast. Harry summoned a bright ball of magic and shot it high into the air. He heard the dragon growl and then he saw the massive form lift off into the air. Harry took that opportunity to levitate himself up. He landed and his heart nearly burst out of his chest when he saw the flames and scorch marks, as well as the cracked ground, but no Malfoy.

"Malfoy!" Harry exclaimed frantically. If Malfoy died it would be all his fault; if the blond died…what would he tell Dimitri? He knew there was some risk to their job, but this was their first assignment. It couldn't happen already, not when Harry thought things were finally going in the right direction.

He heard a coughing sound nearby and Harry immediately wheeled around. He jumped down and used his wand for light as he shined it among the trees and bushes. He saw something move and he shined his wand.

"Damnit, Potter, that's bright!" Malfoy snapped, wincing as the light illuminated his face.

Malfoy's clothes were scorched, his pants ripped and his shirt had so many holes in it he might as well have not been wearing one. His hair was in disarray and his face and arms were all covered in dirt. Otherwise, Malfoy didn't appear to be bleeding, or dying. In fact, he was very much alive and now in an even worse mood than before.

"Bloody dragon!" Malfoy hissed as he pulled some twigs out of his hair. "Almost set me on fire!"

Harry felt relief flood through him so much that he was actually tempted to smile and pat Malfoy on the back. However, he held back mostly because that would have been awkward, but also the sour expression on Malfoy's face made him keep his distance.

"We should get out of here. I don't know how long that ball of magic will last," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded. "Screw sleep! I'm getting the bloody hell out of here!"

The two of them raced through the trees using their wands for light as they made their way the last few miles toward the town. Harry was out of breath by the time they reached the town. It was just barely dawn so they knew the train station wouldn't be operating for another hour.

"I need something to eat, now!" Malfoy grumbled.

Harry just sighed and trudged along with him. He was hungry as well, and thirsty. There was only one muggle café open that early. Before they stepped inside they used charms to clean themselves off so they wouldn't look like a couple of runaways or homeless. They sat down and a waiter came over to them.

"May I get you something to drink?" he asked.

"Water for me, thanks," Harry said, licking his dry lips.

"Me too," Malfoy said, picking up the menu.

The waiter left and a couple minutes later came back with their waters. Harry chose a simple breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast. Malfoy had something similar only with sausage and pancakes. It seemed like he just picked one of the specials that had a lot of food. The waiter left again and Harry sighed as he gulped down his water. Malfoy had already finished his and he brought out his wand and magically refilled his glass.

Harry nearly choked on his water. "Malfoy! What the hell are you doing?" Harry whispered harshly. "You can't do that here!"

"Shut-up, Potter, I'm thirsty! And that waiter is taking forever!"

"Because it's a muggle café, Malfoy. Obviously things don't just appear or float to us instantly," Harry said dryly.

"Well I'm bloody starving, Potter and was nearly killed by a dra—"

Harry kicked his shin so hard that Malfoy cursed loudly, drawing the attention of an old man eating along at a table and reading a newspaper. He glanced over at them but went back to reading. The waiter, who had come at that precise moment, just stared at them curiously. The waiter lowered their plates in front of them as Malfoy glared across the table at him. Harry just gave him a look.

"Will you both be needing anything else?"

The waiter eyed Malfoy's full glass of water and Harry's empty glass.

"Er, more water would be great," Harry said, smiling widely.

The waiter nodded and went to fetch the pitcher.

"Nice going, Malfoy, you almost said the D-word in front of a muggle," Harry whispered.

The blond glared at him, but didn't comment since he was stuffing his face with food. Harry raised an eyebrow since he was not showing very many table manners but decided it best to eat and just ignore him. The waiter came back with a pitcher and filled Harry's glass and then left them to eat in peace. Thankfully Malfoy was rather silent as he ate. Harry glanced at the blond a couple of times finding it odd that they were eating breakfast together. It was a rather surreal feeling since they had never liked to be in close proximity to one another. Even at Hogwarts they were at very separate tables during meals.

When they finished eating, the waiter came back and was ripping the bill off for them. Malfoy stuck his hand in his pocket and Harry heard the jingle. Instantly, he knew what was going to happen. Malfoy was going to pull out a handful of wizard coins in front of the waiter. Harry did the only thing he could in that moment, he kicked Malfoy again really hard in the shin under the table.

"OWWW! Fuck, Potter!" Malfoy blurted out, clutching his leg.

The waiter looked startled and then stared at Harry. Malfoy was fuming and looked ready to jump across the table and strangle him. Harry just stared at him firmly.

"Malfoy, I'm paying, remember?"

"I don't need you to pay for me, I have my own bloody money!" Malfoy exclaimed.

"Here you go, we don't need any change," Harry said, quickly handing the waiter some money.

The waiter looked surprised but he just nodded and left in a hurry. Malfoy was seething and suddenly Harry hissed in pain as Malfoy slammed his foot against Harry's shin.

"Bloody hell!" Harry exclaimed through clenched teeth.

"That's for kicking me twice!" Malfoy exclaimed, pointing a finger at him. "Don't you dare ever do that again, Potter."

"I was saving our arses!" Harry exclaimed, glaring at him as he rubbed his leg. "Because you were being a stupid idiot, you bugger!"

Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "How was I—"

"Because first you used magic in a muggle place," Harry said as Malfoy crossed his arms. "And then you wanted to pay him using wizard coins," Harry whispered. "This is a muggle restaurant they don't accept mysterious gold coins, got it? I have muggle money, do you?"  
>Malfoy breathed out heavily and then uncrossed his arms. "Fine. Whatever. So I forgot that this was a stupid muggle place. I was literally starving!"<p>

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh stop being dramatic, Malfoy, it hasn't even been a full 24 hours since you've eaten. It would take a lot more than that to starve."

"Really? And you're telling me you weren't starving?"

"No, I wasn't. That's why I didn't need the berries," Harry said as Malfoy snorted. "I can go a long time without food."

Harry said that calmly but on the inside he felt his heart pounding. He didn't want Malfoy to know what he went through, but at the same time he did. He wanted Malfoy to understand that despite that the blond thought that he loved his fame and that his life was wonderful, the truth is that his life was far from wonderful. Even without Voldemort, he had had a miserable experience with his relatives and a part of him wanted to reveal that fact to Malfoy. He wasn't sure why. Perhaps he wanted the blond to understand that he didn't have a big head and that he had gone through a lot. Maybe then Malfoy would show more respect to him. Or maybe not. Maybe he would just think Harry was itching for sympathy.

"Been stranded often, Potter?" Malfoy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Point is that you can actually survive a while on just water. Anyway, we should probably get going if we want to make the first train."

Sighing, Malfoy stood up and Harry followed suit. They managed to make it in time before the first train left. It felt so good to be sitting upon a wizard train in a comfortable compartment. Unfortunately since they bought their tickets at the last minute there was only one compartment available – a very small one at the end of the train that they had to share. Malfoy was scowling, slumped against the seat probably just as upset that they had to be stuck together yet again. Harry just stared out the window trying his best to ignore the blond. A part of him wanted to try to start up casual conversation, but it seemed ridiculous. Malfoy always seemed to be in a bad mood and he didn't ever seem to want to just talk. All the blond did was argue all the time and it was infuriating. There was no way that they could ever get along. Harry hoped this was the last time they would have to work on the same assignment.

To his relief, the trolley came in and Harry bought some chocolate frogs. He had grown to like them despite being weirded out the first time he had tried one. Malfoy bought a bottle of Butterbeer and was asked for ID. Harry just smiled to himself watching as Malfoy's cheeks turned a bit pink out of anger. He obviously didn't like being thought of as a minor. Once Malfoy had his butterbeer he seemed to relax a little, but he didn't say anything. Harry found that there was a Famous Wizard Card in his chocolate frog and he grinned.

"Hey look!"

Malfoy turned when he spoke and Harry grinned as he revealed the Famous Wizard Card. It was a picture of himself.

"I can't believe I made the Famous Wizard Card collection already. The war just ended a few months ago."

"How are you not surprised?" Malfoy drawled. "The whole world's been talking about you since you showed up at Hogwarts."

The blond snorted and then took another swig of his butterbeer. Harry just shrugged. "I thought it was rather wicked considering out of all the cards I got myself."

"You actually collect those?" Malfoy asked with an amused grin.

"No, not really, I only have a couple because I like chocolate frogs. Actually, I have one of Dumbledore too," Harry said, smiling. "Hmm…I doubt they'll ever put Voldemort on one of these, but what about Grindlewald?"

"Grindlewald and You-Know-Who are both considered _infamous_ wizards, Potter. I thought that was obvious," Malfoy said sarcastically.

"Yeah, I guess so," Harry said. "Why do you call Voldemort that still? The war's over. He's not coming back."

Malfoy stared at him and his expression hardened. "I can call him whatever I want to, Potter."

Harry shrugged. "I'm just saying usually people who are afraid of him call him that. If it helps you can call him by his muggle name. I called him that to his face the last time I saw him."

Malfoy stared at him with an unreadable look in his eyes.

"It's Tom, if you're interested," Harry said.

"I'm aware of that," Malfoy said tersely.

"Oh," Harry said. "He told you?"

Malfoy glared at him. The blond suddenly seemed uncomfortable with where the conversation was going and he wasn't hiding it.

"Don't be daft Potter, obviously my father told me. Why don't you just oogle yourself on the Famous Wizard Card and not speak to me?"

"I'm not oogling myself! That's something you would do. I'm not arrogant and narcissistic."

"I wouldn't be lame enough to end up on a wizard card and I'm not narcissistic!" Malfoy snapped. "You're the one with the big inflated head."

"No!" Harry shouted, leaning forward as Malfoy looked taken aback by his harsh tone. "That's your assumption of me. You've always been wrong about that. I never asked for my fame nor did I want it. I still don't want it. It's a nuisance. I just want to get on with my life and forget about the war and I wish people would just leave me alone."

Harry sat back in his seat, not realizing how angry he felt. He could feel the anger swelling inside of him and couldn't control what came out. He hadn't even meant to start an argument with him. He expected Malfoy to shout right back at him and insult him like he used to, but Malfoy just took another gulp of his butterbeer.

"If you feel that way, Potter, why don't you become invisible?"

"Right, Malfoy," Harry said dryly, "I'll just live my life that way. Besides, I don't know how to become invisible without my cloak."

"That's not what I meant," Malfoy said, rolling his eyes. "I meant you can make your whereabouts unknown to just about everyone, except the Ministry of course."

Harry's anger died down. "Er, really? How?"

"Simple charms of course. It prevents any reporters from getting anywhere near them. Sometimes, depending on the charm, it confuses them. Or it makes them forget what they were doing in the first place. It depends on how strong you want the protections. I would have thought you'd have learned that by now."

"No, I didn't know there were such things," Harry said, realizing that Sirius' place had had similar protections. Its whereabouts had been unknown for their protection, but Harry had no idea what kind of spells or charms had been placed on it. He still hadn't gone there since the war ended. He knew it was his but he couldn't bring himself to go back there.

Malfoy snorted. "You're so clueless Potter."

Harry just gave him an annoyed look. "You know I didn't grow up in the wizard world."

Malfoy just raised an eyebrow. He took another swig of his butterbeer. "So are the rumors true that you're writing a book about your experience fighting the Dark Lord?"

"What? No. Where did you hear that?"

Shrugging, the blond just set his drink down. "I read it in an article of _The Chronicles_."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What's that?"

"It's the most well known paper in Ireland, almost as well known as _The Daily Prophet_."

"Well it's a load of crock. You should know better than to trust any of those papers," Harry said. "Even I know that and I didn't grow up here."

Malfoy shrugged. "Sometimes their articles are true."

Harry just shook his head. "Well, it's not."

The two of them fell into silence and Harry turned back out the window. It was so strange having a conversation with Malfoy, one that didn't involve insults. While they still didn't get along, Harry noticed it was different from their interactions at school. He was tempted to ask him why he wanted the money and if his parents had been arrested by the Ministry, but he figured that wouldn't go over too well. Instead, Harry just stared out the window again unsure of what else to say. Harry didn't realize he had fallen asleep until the train stopped and made a loud noise. He woke up and turned to see that Malfoy was rubbing at his eyes. The blond must have fallen asleep too. Neither one of them had gotten much sleep the night before due to near-death experiences. The two of them got off the train, which was only a short distance from where the Heleborey building was.

To Harry's dismay, Cyprian was walking down the hall as they entered.

"Harry! It's nice to see you again," he said, squeezing into the elevator with them.

Malfoy gave him a disdainful look. Cyprian didn't even notice since he completely ignored him.

"I see you're still alive after your first assignment. Always a good sign," he said, grinning widely.

Harry forced a small smile. "Er, yeah."

Cyprian was rather annoying and awkward.

"So what assignment did you get? I know you're working on the dangerous creatures volume so I know it has to be something good."

"Uh, Venomous Tentacula," Harry answered reluctantly.

"Wow! Seriously? I heard those things can be lethal! Good thing you're not lying dead somewhere, huh?"

Cyprian laughed at his own joke and turned away for a moment. Harry's eyes caught Malfoy's and he saw the most appalled expression on Malfoy's face. The blond exchanged a look with him then rolled his eyes as if to signal he felt the same as he did about Cyprian. Cyprian adjusted his glasses and finally turned to Malfoy, as if noticing him for the first time.

"Me and Harry are very good friends," he said smiling.

Malfoy forced a lopsided, sarcastic grin. "How wonderful."

Malfoy stole a glance at Harry who was subtle shaking his head vigorously that he was not at all friends with Cyprian. The second Cyprian glanced at him however Harry held still and forced another smile. Malfoy's lips curled into an amused smirk. Then Cyprian turned his attention back to Malfoy.

"Who are you? I haven't seen you here before. Are you a new researcher? If so, I can certainly show you around."

"That won't be necessary. I'm not a researcher."

Cyprian looked surprised. The elevator opened and Harry and Malfoy immediately got off.

"See you later, Harry!" Cyprian exclaimed as he waved.

"Er, yeah."

The elevator door closed and Cyprian continued to go up. Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

"He gives me the creeps," Malfoy said, scowling toward the elevator, which was now gone.

"Yeah," Harry said in agreement.

He was rather lost in thought. He knew they were here for the money and to turn in the first assignment and probably collect a new one, but he started to actually wonder if it would be better to work with someone on the assignments. He used to prefer working alone, especially when Malfoy was involved, but it had taken the both of them to really get that plant. If Harry had been by himself and taken off guard like that, the plant would have probably poisoned him. He hated to admit it, but Malfoy had been a big help in that situation. Maybe there was another person working in the same area as Harry. Perhaps if they made a compromise to help one another with their assignments…

Harry's thoughts were interrupted when they approached the door with a sign that read _Field Employees Only. _It flashed in bright gold letters. Malfoy snorted. "They really use way too many fancy charms in this place."

He pushed the door open and Harry followed him inside. What he saw astounded him. The room was huge – at least twice the size of the lobby. It must have been charmed that way so as not to make the building look lopsided. There were people working at desks that were floating midair. Papers were flying by themselves and entering drawers. There were columns and columns of drawers that levitated up and down depending on which files needed to be accessed. There were probably thousands upon thousands of files. There were stairs that led up many flights of stairs toward the tall, expanding ceiling which had to be at least as tall as Hogwarts. Each of the stairs led to more drawers that were grouped together. There were golden letters that appeared in midair above certain groups of drawers. One said _Volume One: Ancient Plants Used in Sorcery, Volume Two: Plants and Potions, Volume Three: Swamp Plants and Related Species, Volume Four: Plants as Pets, Volume Five: Plants with Healing Properties, Volume Six: Medicinal Plants for Hexes, Volume Seven: Underwater Plant Species, Volume Eight: Medicinal Plants for Curses, Volume Nine: Dangerous and Carnivorous Plants. _Harry realized that their volume, Volume Nine, and Volume Eight were flashing red. That must have meant that those were the ones currently being worked on. That meant others out there were working on _Volume Eight: Medicinal Plants for Curses_. It sounded it a lot less intense than their volume.

"Why hello there," a young woman not much older than Harry and Malfoy said as she lowered her desk. "Are you here to compile your data?"

"Yes ma'am," Harry said automatically.

Malfoy snorted as if holding in a laugh.

The young woman just smiled and chuckled. "You can call me Liaeda. What are your names?"

"Draco," Malfoy said nodding toward her.

She extended her hand toward him and he shook it politely. Harry smiled at her and nodded.

"Er, Harry."

Instantly, Liaeda's eyes widened and her eyes traveled up to his forehead. "You're Harry Potter!"

Harry instantly froze. He was quite sure his bangs were covering his forehead.

"I heard you were working for us. Word travels fast especially when it's 'bout someone like you." She smiled again. "Are you both working on the same volume?"

"Yes," Malfoy said. Harry could sense a bit of sarcasm so he sent him a glare as soon as Liaeda looked away.

"Great! I will need you both to compile your data on these forms," she said.

Harry took his form as did Malfoy. He looked down at all the blanks wondering if they were supposed to bring their own quills. Then he glanced over at Malfoy who was waving his wand over each question. Harry felt his cheeks burn. Of course they could their wands as quills, why not? Malfoy grumbled the spell after he reached the next question and Harry scooted closer to listen. He finally caught the spell but Malfoy turned to see him right next to him.

"What are you doing Potter? Trying to cheat off my paper?"

"No, of course not, just…you know, er…that spell," Harry said uncomfortably.

Both of Malfoy's eyebrows rose. "You don't know a simple writing spell?"

"It was never taught in school," Harry grumbled. "They always had us use quills. I know there are quills charmed to write by themselves based on your voice."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Of course Potter, that's been around for ages. So has this spell," he said with a smirk.

Harry just glared at him and muttered the spell as he filled out all the questions. Once he was done he also handed it to Liaeda who was staring at them both with a grin. She probably overheard their argument.

"Very good," she said, waving her wand. The forms flew up toward the drawers under their volume and disappeared inside them. "Now, do you have any samples at this time?"

"Oh, er, yes," Harry said, taking out the vial.

Malfoy took out his as well and handed it to her. She waved her wand again and they flew to a separate drawer labeled _For Study. _

"Our experts will study those samples to learn more 'bout the creature you've encountered. It will be included in the volume," she said, noting Harry's curious expression.

Harry nodded. "Oh great. Er, are we supposed to go check in with Dimitri?"

She nodded and smiled. "Yes. He might have another assignment for you, but he usually likes to discuss the findings for his own benefit. It was nice meeting you both!"

Harry waved to her and Malfoy was staring at him as they walked down the hall toward the elevator.

"What?"

"She obviously fancies you," Malfoy said.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "That's the first time I've met her."

"Please Potter, everyone fancies you when they meet you," Malfoy said with a sarcastic drawl. "You can't seriously be _that_ blind?"

Harry clenched his jaw. So Malfoy was back to insulting him again. It didn't take long for his true personality to show through. Malfoy's comment struck more than one nerve. Harry realized that his glasses were a problem. They had fallen off when the dragon had appeared and if he hadn't managed to summon his wand in time, Malfoy could have…

There must have been something he could do about his glasses. There were so many potions out there he thought there had to be one for vision, even temporarily. He would have to owl Hermione when he got back home. Thankfully, they reached Dimitri's office rather quickly so Harry wasn't tempted to insult Malfoy back. He knew he would say something he'd regret. Malfoy knocked on the door and it swung open, startling them both.

"Come in!"

Angrily, Harry walked ahead of Malfoy stepping in his way as he did so. Malfoy was forced to step backward and he glared at him. Malfoy had enough sense not to curse at him when Dimitri was in hearing range so Harry had temporarily gotten away with it.

"Ah, Harry, Draco! You're both here! That must mean you've completed a part of your assignments."

"Actually, I believe we completed the whole assignment," Harry said, glancing at Malfoy who nodded.

The blond was making sure not to make eye contact with Harry. Dimitri's eyes widened considerably.

"You finished it? In one go? That's unheard of! I don't even have another assignment prepared yet!" he exclaimed gleefully. "That's alright, I can find one for you both in a couple of days. In the meantime let me get you your pay."

Waving his wand, he summoned two envelopes with their names on them. The envelopes floated to their respective owners.

"Inside is 198 Galleons, 10 Sickles and 10 Knuts for each of you," he said smiling.

Harry calculated that in his head into muggle money. He was still not entirely used to how wizard currency worked, but it amounted to about $2,000 dollars in muggle money. It was a lot of money for just one assignment, although they did risk their lives.

"Now, I understand as we get into the more aggressive creatures there's more of a risk. When we come to that I will double your pay."

Malfoy seemed rather pleased by the smile on his face.

"Were you both able to collect samples as well as data?" he asked curiously.

Harry and Malfoy both nodded.

"Really? What kind of samples?" he asked with excitement.

Harry glanced at Malfoy who didn't seem to be initiating it. "Er, well, I managed to collect a sample with one of their black spots with the poisonous needle sticking out."

"My word! Well done, Mr. Potter! I daresay that is one the most important features of this creature that we have yet to understand! We don't know what kind of poison it uses or how it's emitted. This will help us immensely!"

He clapped his hands together and as he did so he turned around. Harry glanced at Malfoy who was in the midst of rolling his eyes. Obviously, Malfoy was sick of hearing people praise him. Harry felt a bit guilty. After all, he wouldn't have been able to get that sample if Malfoy hadn't distracted it.

"Er, Malfoy was acting as decoy for me so I could get it."

The blond snapped his head in his direction and Harry avoided his gaze.

"Really? What a wonderful plan," Dimitri said, grinning at Malfoy. "Very risky too, Mr. Malfoy."

Malfoy just shrugged. "It wasn't that bad."

Harry had the urge to roll his eyes but he didn't.

"Well, I must say, you two work splendid together! Sometimes people end up working together and sometimes they don't, you know, just some people can't really work well together."

Harry instantly swallowed and he was sure Malfoy was feeling just as uncomfortable. It felt like they were lying to Dimitri.

"It does work out much more efficiently to have a partner, that's why we always have at least two people on an assignment together. It's not just for the diversity of information but it's also because a lot of times the creatures encountered are rather a pain, or very hard to get close to and sometimes it's a lot for one witch or wizard to handle. That's why we operate the way we do. That's also why it usually takes us so long to come out with a volume. It's very hard to find people brave enough to take this kind of a job. Now, you two might be a little young, but have you heard of the great wizard Solomney Grunnion?"

Harry shook his head.

"Yes, I've heard of him. My great grandfather mentioned him one time a long time ago. He was a greater explorer and researcher wasn't he?" Malfoy said.

Harry glanced at him and Malfoy gave him a smug smile. He tried very hard not to let it bother him.

"Yes, indeed, one of the best. He traveled all over the world and was the first to see quite a few creatures that are well-known now, including the mythical Hippocampus."

Harry remembered that from Hagrid. It was a Mer-horse with the head and forequarters of a horse, and hindquarters and tail of a giant fish. It sounded preposterous.

"No one has ever seen it up close like he has. That's why people think it's a myth. He's the only one to claim to have seen it, although there was an odd skeleton that resembled such a creature found by Gilderoy Lockhart some years ago."

Harry's hands instantly clenched hard at the name. Dimitri didn't seem to notice and Harry had to bite his tongue not to say anything. What was the point in telling people about Gilderoy Lockhart's schemes? There was no concrete evidence and now Lockhart was in St. Mungo's with no memory of his great "achievements" or what he did to those who really experienced the adventures in his books.

"Anyway, I'm sorry to go about babbling. I just get so excited about this subject. You two have just made my day. With you two working here, we can get three or four volumes out in a year instead of just one or two. Our business will definitely pick up! I must get started on preparing your next assignments and future volumes. I will owl you both when I have your next assignment."

With that Dimitri grinned and shook both of their hands. They left the office with their envelopes and Harry could still feel the anger bubbling within him.

"What the hell was that about Potter?" Malfoy asked.

Harry turned to him, not realizing he was staring off into space. "What?"

"When he mentioned Gilderoy Lockhart you got all red like you drank a bottle of Firewhiskey. I thought you two were all chummy what with that photo of you two taken during our second year."

Harry remembered that Malfoy and his family had been there in that store when Gilderoy appeared and pulled Harry aside. He didn't want to think about the past.

"Nothing, he just…he's a fake, and he got what he deserved."

Malfoy's eyebrows rose. "You know what happened to him?"

"Of course I do! I was down there with him in the Chamber of Secrets when the idiot tried to obliviate me and Ron but accidentally obliviated himself. Good riddance."

Malfoy's eyes were wide with shock. "In the…wait, he obliviated himself? I thought memory charms were his specialty?"

"Yes, but Ron's wand was broken so it wasn't working properly."

"Hmm, interesting," Malfoy murmured. "Everyone was talking about that when he left the school, wondering how he became like that. I suspected it had to do with you, of course, but nobody else did."

"That's not all he did," Harry said, clenching his jaw.

Malfoy turned to him. "What else?"

Harry took in a deep breath. "He admitted that he used people. He would go and interview brave people who encountered all the things in his books. He went there to steal the information from them. After the interview was over he would obliviate those people and take credit for things he never did! It's disgusting! That's why he wanted to obliviate us, because we knew the truth. Among other things I guess. I mean, those poor people. They go and risk their lives, spend their lives searching for this information and it's all gone in one instant, taken away from them. Not only do they not remember it, but they never got credit for it. How many people died that no one cared about, who seemed like they didn't do anything very special, but in reality did?"

"It happens more often that you think, Potter," Malfoy said. "There are loads of people who take credit for things they shouldn't. It's happened throughout the ages."

Harry glanced at him. Malfoy wasn't giving him his usual scowl or taunting sneer. "Well, that still doesn't make it right. I for one may not like my fame, but it would upset me if I risked my life all these years going up against Voldemort, but someone else takes credit for all of it, including his defeat."

"If that had happened, you would have been obliviated and wouldn't be angry about much of anything," Malfoy countered.

Harry turned and gave him an irritated look. "You know what I mean. Anyway, we need to get along better if we're going to be partners. I felt guilty when Dimitri was praising us in there for working hard together."

Malfoy glanced at him with a scowl. "Potter, I don't need your help. We can just pretend we were helping each other out."

"That would definitely be lying and I'm not doing that! Besides, we're less likely to die if we come across a really aggressive plant creature, and yet we still get the same amount of money. It would be mutually beneficial."

Sighing, Malfoy answered sounding tired. "Fine. We'll work together, but you better not get in my way. And next time that I'm being attacked by a dragon don't sit on your ass on the ground!"

"My glasses had flown off! The dragon's tail threw me off the edge and I couldn't see!"

"Well you better fix that problem because if we're going to work together you're not going to leave me like that. Besides, I thought you were a hero, Potter," Malfoy said, smirking.

"I'm not perfect, okay, Malfoy? Whenever I faced Voldemort I didn't survive because I had a plan, I had to think on my feet."

"Well, considering that thinking on your feet this time landed you on your ass, you better start planning."

Harry was tempted to turn the nearest statue into a Banshee so it could scream into Malfoy's ear and blow his arrogant, annoying head off. Malfoy apparated once he exited the building before Harry could act on any of his thoughts. Harry was fuming with annoyance, especially at the idea of spending even more time with Malfoy. He walked a little ways, not being able to apparate quite yet due to the distance from any streets he was familiar with that were nearest to his place. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle and he looked behind him. Nobody was there. Harry felt uneasy and walked a few more steps before he was able to apparate. He apparated to the small town just a few blocks from his place. There he got some lunch and took it with him back to his place.

Harry owled Hermione about the issues he was having with his glasses and if she knew of any way to cure his eyesight. She would understand best not just because she was smart and knowledgeable but because she would understand when he wrote 'like contacts'. Harry thought about how his friends would react when they found out he was not only working at the same place as Malfoy, but as partners. He knew they would find out sometime, but he would try to hold it off as long as possible.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Hopefully, you all enjoyed this next chapter! I will try to update a chapter a week, if I can. It shouldn't be more than a couple of weeks if I'm bogged down with homework. So let me know what you think so far! :-)

**A big thanks to all who take the time to review! You keep me motivated! ****I really hope this story proves to be better than my others! That's my goal! **

_**Disclaimer:**_A lot of my information on people and creatures and plants, including the Venomous Tentacula, I get from **Harry Potter Lexicon**. Check it out if you haven't already! It's wonderful! I do make up some of my own things though. :-)

**To Reviewers: **

**messyhxdlovers**: Yes, I'm back! Haha! And better than ever! Hopefully. I'm glad it feels different to you. I want it to be its own unique story, but at the same time have both the feel-good quality of Captivation, and the suspense of Pure Rhapsody. At least that's my goal. And I do promise you there's less angst in this story! There will always be drama/suspense but this story I feel is more humorous. It's definitely not going to be as angsty-ish as Pure Rhapsody. It will have the same feel-good as Captivation only hopefully with more complexity and more humor. Awww, thanks so much! It's such an honor to be considered one of your favorite authors, thanks! I'm so glad you liked Captivation. It's so funny because I've gone back to it a couple of times and already found things that I would have liked to change. Ah well, it's never perfect. I'm hoping this one will be even better!

**Kitty-kat-the-ninja**** :** Thank you so much! I'm glad you like it so far! I will update asap!

**blkphoenix88**: Thank you! I'm glad that this story is interesting to you so far! I hope that it will continue to get better!

**Eyeinthesky****:** Thanks! I'm glad you like the setup! I wanted something different from anything I've done previously. And it's fun to explore the wizard world a bit and make up your own stuff. Hehe! Hopefully it flows even better than my other stories. I'm hoping that I've improved. It's possible that there may be some things that don't flow quite as well, but do let me know if you ever catch that.

**Unknown/anonymous:** Thank you! I'm really glad you like this so far. I hope it only gets better from here. Oh yes, I like to include several different countries because it's fascinating to me. Actually, I was researching dragons at the Harry Potter Lexicon and found this one to be interesting to me. It happened to be from New Zealand, according to the books, so that's where I decided to take them. It's not the only place they will go though. I've actually never been to New Zealand. I've never been out of the US in fact. So it's fun for me to research various places and pick locations for my evil plots, hehe!


	3. The Warning

_**Luminescence **_

**Chapter Two: The Warning**

The next morning Harry received an owl when he woke up. It was from Hermione:

_Harry,_

_I'm sorry I couldn't reply yesterday but my job has been very busy! The good news is that I've been getting more projects to do in analyzing potions. My goal is to help find a cure for something. Anyway, in answer to your question, there is a way you can fix your vision, temporarily of course, which does a similar fix to contacts. There is a very expensive potion you can buy, but the problem is that it isn't sold very often because the ingredients used in it are scarce. It was popular at one time, and I think you could still get it, but you'd probably have to go out of your way to a specialty potion shop. The only one that I know of is in Ireland called Veneficus Lux. They used to have one in Scotland, but during the war it was raided and destroyed. The potion is called Visum Draught. They still sell it but it's extremely expensive and to brew it on your own would take around 3 months, and that's if you can find all the ingredients on your own. I hope that helps! _

_Hermione_

Harry sighed and folded up the letter. He would have to purchase a train ticket to Ireland and go to that specialty shop. It was a good thing he and Malfoy didn't have another assignment yet. Harry showered and got dressed and went straight to the train station to buy his ticket. The train ride wasn't quite as long as the one to New Zealand, which was nice. Harry decided that since he was out in Ceardlane shopping district in Ireland that he would search for a new broom to buy as well.

In order to even get into Ceardlane he had to approach a statue of some Celtic warrior and whisper "alohomora". Instantly, the statue's arm moved and the entire body turned, revealing a passage way behind it. Harry slipped into the passage and it closed behind him. It wasn't as large as Hogsmeade but there were plenty of shops. Harry found a clothes shop and decided to buy something extra. He bought a pair of fire resistant dark jeans (since the dragon attack it was better to be safe than sorry) and a new forest green t-shirt. It brought out his eyes a lot and he had to admit he actually looked attractive. He had grown out of his lanky, awkward stage. His face filled out more so it wasn't as angular and his body had filled out with more meat and a lot of muscle from Quidditch and the war.

After that Harry instantly stopped when he saw a broom store. He went inside and saw the black and silver colors of the Irish team, the Trodai Spellbinders. He remembered that they were one of the teams in the championships this year. He had completely forgotten about the Quidditch Championships. He would have to ask Ron what date it was and whether or not he was going to the match. Harry hadn't been to a Quidditch match since his fourth year and he really wanted to go again. There were many kinds of brooms, but of course Harry was drawn to the latest edition. It was said to be almost as good as a professional Quidditch broom. It was called the Lightningbolt. It was the latest upgrade from the Firebolt. It was pricey but nothing he couldn't afford. It was worth it to have a good broom, as long as Malfoy didn't ruin it. Harry made sure to include extra protections on it just to be safe.

He got the store that Hermione mentioned, Veneficus Lux. It was a large store with shelves and shelves of potions. Some of them were in ancient vials and others were in more modern vials. The man behind the counter was middle-aged; he still looked rather young. He had a very mysterious appearance and he wasn't sure if it was because of the dark brown eyes, or his smile.

"Welcome," he said in a thick Irish accent. "How might I serve you today?"

Harry approached the counter, realizing there wasn't anyone in the store.

"This is one of our slow periods," the man said, noting Harry's wandering eyes.

Harry turned back and nodded. "Er, yeah, I'm looking for Visum Draught."

The man smiled knowingly. "Of course. I see. That is a very expensive potion."

"Yes, I know," Harry said. "How much exactly?"

"Four hundred twenty seven galleons and five knuts."

Harry fought hard not to raise his eyebrows. That was extremely expensive. That was practically half his pay that he had just gotten, which amounted to over four thousand dollars.

"That is pricey. How long will it last?"

The man smiled and went to the cabinet behind him. He waved his wand and opened it. Inside, was a black bottle that he took out. It was scarcely bigger than a regular vial.

"This will last you two weeks, because you only need to take a sip to last 24 hours. It is that potent, which is part of why it's expensive. However, the ingredients are incredibly challenging to collect. The one ingredient which is nearly impossible is the scale of a Ramora."

"What's that?" Harry asked curiously.

Setting the potion down, the man grinned. "It is a powerful silver-coloured fish from the Indian Ocean. This creature is well respected because it is considered a guardian for seafarers. It has the ability of anchoring ships, but has been poached for many years. It is finally protected from poaching by International Wizard Law, however they have dwindled in numbers. The other problem is that they don't usually surface unless there's a stranded ship, or seaman. Even if they do appear, we have to be careful not to harm them when removing a scale as their scales are very delicate."

"Er, don't they breed?" Harry asked awkwardly.

The man chuckled. "Yes, every living creature does, but for them their mating season is every three years, for whatever reason. I suspect it's because they live over a thousand years long so they don't have to mate very often. Or at least that's not how they're programmed, and I think it's due to the long life cycle. Of course they didn't expect wizards to come along and murder them for their scales, but…well, there you have it."

"Oh," Harry said.

Sighing, the man stared at him thoughtfully. "You know, even if you do manage to collect a scale, which is only enough for one vial, it takes about three months to brew properly. You won't be able to collect more than one scale at once because they can elude you. Once you lure them to you there's only a couple minute window to retrieve a scale before their defenses come up. Their scales glow brightly when on their bodies, from the power they emit, and it will blind and disorient you. By the time you can see and think clearly again they're gone. Trust me, they're a pain in the arse to catch, laddie. I assume you're looking for a permanent fix for your glasses."

Harry nodded. "Yes."

"Well, this vial will last you two weeks, but it's the only one I've got. I can't guarantee when I'll have another one."

Harry thought about it, weighing the pros and cons. If only he could substitute that Ramora scale. Then it hit him – Snape's old potion book! He had kept it in case it ever came in handy, and as a souvenir from Snape, seeing as how he didn't really know the man much but was grateful for everything he did. Perhaps he could find a substitute in there.

"Alright, I'll buy it, but I do have one favor."

The man gave him a small smile. "And what would that be?"

"Can you give me the recipe for it?"

"I suppose so, although like I said coming by the ingredients yourself is next to impossible."

"That's okay, I'd just like to have it."

The man stared at him curiously but finally nodded. "Very well, since it's a pricey potion anyway, I might as well include it."

The man packaged everything together for him and held it out to him. Harry signed the form that would allow the Gremlins to take that much out of his account, since he didn't carry that much money on him, and then the man grinned.

"Have a nice day…Mr. Potter."

Harry halted as he turned to leave, startled that the man had recognized him but hadn't said anything. He smiled and nodded to the man, grateful that he wasn't a crazy fan; he just treated him like a normal person.

"Thank you."

He left the place feeling more hopeful. He decided to stop for lunch since he had gone all the way out there. There was a place nearby called The Love Potion. It was a nice café thankfully not as tacky as it sounded. The booths were red and the floor was charmed to have hearts appear and disappear, but otherwise the menu explained the name. Everything was made to the customer's own desire, and anything they wanted at all. It must have been expensive because it took quite a bit of magic to summon creations they didn't have in stock and it was impossible to please everyone. However, Harry thought it was rather creative.

"What would you like sir?" a young witch asked him. She was wearing a pink uniform with a shirt that had a picture of a Love Potion on it that blinked various colors.

"Um, do you have any specials?"

She smiled. "Hun, anything you feel like having just blurt it out and we'll get it to you, and make it to your specifications."

"Er, how about…fried Occamy eggs, and er some Boggart Fries."

"Coming right up," she said. "Anything to drink?"

Harry decided for once he would stay away from Butterbeer. It didn't have much alcohol at all, unless one drank about ten of them, but he decided to try something new. He had heard Dean bragging about it once.

"A Fizzling Pixie please."

She just nodded and smiled. "What flavor?"

"Er, chocolate."

"Coming right up."

She apparated to the back room and came back a minute later with his order. Harry began eating and was so focused on eating that he didn't notice someone staring at him until he looked up. A familiar blond-haired girl with hazy blue eyes stared back at him.

"Luna?"

"Hi Harry," she said wistfully. "May I sit?"

"Er, sure."

Harry blinked a couple times, completely taken off guard. He didn't expect to see Luna in Ireland of all places. She sat down and smiled at him rather peculiarly.

"I haven't seen you in a while," Harry said, "how are you?"

"Good. My father and I are taking trips to see some great places. This was our first stop and then we're going to Italy."

"Oh, nice."

Harry paused not really sure what to say. He hadn't seen her since the war ended. Even then they hadn't had much of a chance to talk with all the chaos happening.

Luna smiled. "What are you doing Harry? You haven't by any chance seen any Fraeglins around, have you?"

"Er, Fraeglins?"

"Yes, they're in the Gremlin family but their home is here in Ireland. My father told me many stories growing up about how they will sometimes sneak into homes and change the color of furniture for fun, sometimes even your skin. Many times people think they've come down with Dragon Pox or something. It's just their way of having fun."

Harry shook his head. Luna always knew about the strangest of creatures. People at school said she imagined a lot of them, but although she was strange Harry knew from hanging out with her that she was very bright.

"What is everyone else doing? I haven't seen Ron or Hermione around, except for graduation," she said, staring up at the ceiling.

Harry proceeded to tell her what was going on with them, even though he had a feeling she wasn't paying much attention. Or if she was, she was a great multitasker. In the middle of telling her about how he just got a job through Neville, her expression suddenly faltered. Her eyes got very wide and her attention snapped back on him.

"You must watch out for the emerald horn; that person is not the same."

"What?" Harry asked, leaning forward. "What's the emerald horn? What person?"

Luna blinked and cocked her head. "What, Harry? What do you mean?"

Harry's mouth parted and he stared at her with disbelief. It reminded him of the time Professor Trelawney had warned him about Wormtail's escape and she hadn't remembered it. Luna often times seemed very loopy, but perhaps there were times when her mind wasn't just elsewhere but in the future. Perhaps she had some seer in her family somewhere.

"Luna, is there a seer in your family?"

She looked puzzled. "Not that I know of, Harry. Why do you ask?"

"Er, no reason."

"It would be rather interesting to have a seer in the family, don't you agree?" she asked casually.

Harry opened his mouth but just then someone came up to the table.

"Luna, thank goodness! I was worried – oh, hello Mr. Potter," Mr. Lovegood said, nodding his head.

He had a rather guilty expression on his face. Harry bet it was because he still felt guilty about nearly allowing the Death Eaters to capture him during his sixth year when they visited his house. He didn't blame Mr. Lovegood; after all, he was just protecting his daughter. Harry's own parents gave their lives to save him.

"Nice to see you again, sir," Harry said politely.

"Harry and I were just catching up," Luna said, smiling.

"That's wonderful," Mr. Lovegood said. "I'm so sorry, but our train leaves very shortly."

Harry nodded.

Luna stood up from the table and then turned to Harry. "It was nice to see you. I'm very glad you like your new job so far."

So she had been listening. Harry smiled. "It was nice to see you too, Luna. Hope to see you again."

She smiled and turned around, her long, pale blond hair flowing behind her. Her blonde hair suddenly reminded him of Malfoy, although he didn't know why he had to think of him. Shaking his head, Harry finished off his meal, taking note that the Fizzling Pixie tasted a lot like a shake, only with fizz. On his way back home, Harry thought about what Luna said. It wasn't much to go on, and it sounded ludicrous to watch out for a horn. Why was the color (emerald) significant? If he asked Ron or Hermione they would both wave it off as nonsense, but something about the way she said it made him feel that it was something more.

When Harry got back home later that evening, the first thing he did was go up to his room and go to his old trunk from Hogwarts, which he kept for sentimental reasons, mostly. Inside his trunk, he kept his diploma from Hogwarts, his NEWTs scores gleaming on a certificate. Considering that he spent his whole seventh year chasing Horcruxes and then finally battling Voldemort, he was surprised that he passed. Of course, Hermione had tutored him and due to his defeating Voldemort he was given an extension on taking the tests, so that helped. Despite that he passed with pretty good scores, Harry felt like he missed out on so much from his seventh year. There was nothing he could do to change the past though. He dug past his invisibility cloak and found Snape's old potion book.

"Please let there be something in here," Harry muttered as he opened the old book. He searched for the potion and found only a little snippet on it. What made his heart jump was Snape's handwriting next to the short passage.

_**Ingredients for potion are inadequate. Main property of the Ramona scale that helps with vision is the secretion from the body that seeps into the scales. It is an oil gland of the creature that releases this which gives it the majority of its abilities. It has been tested and documented that the oil contains properties of hormones such as Admonein and Phylaterioxine. These same secretions have also been documented in the Shrake creature. From samples, I discovered that this salt-water fish from the Atlantic Ocean is just as effective in this potion as the Ramora. What's more is that the Shrake releases the hormones through its spines, which it uses to destroy muggle fishing nets, and its spines fall off and re-grow as it ages. These spines are commonly collected and used in beatifying potions, like Sacharissa Tugwood's line of beauty products, The hormones help improve skin due to the fact that the hormones help the creatures live a much longer life than even wizards. **_

_**However, I have discovered a much more useful property for this ingredient and that is in the Visum Draught. It is easier to collect and in fact I found that vision not only improved as with the Ramora scale, but in fact it took a lot less time to make. Alongside that, with a few drops of this synthesized potion made with the Shrake spines (crushed but every ounce of the hormone oil must not be wasted!), put directly in the eyes after mixed with regular Hellabore, a healing plant, can effectively help vision for several hours in emergency situations, if there's not enough for a full dose to ingest. With the Shrake spines the potion only has to brew for a good five days to make sure everything has melded together nicely. The potion's effectiveness is just as good as the Ramora scale. I found that my test subject was able to see for an entire two weeks, before the vision began to blur again, having only taken one ounce of the potion. **_

Harry stared at the scribbled writing again, reading it over to make sure. He couldn't believe his luck! Snape was brilliant. He was beyond brilliant. Why hadn't he ever told anybody about what he discovered? Didn't he want people to know that there were better ways to make potions that could help people? Or perhaps he just didn't think people deserved to know. Snape had been rather a loner to begin with anyway. He wished that Snape had done something more with his gift, like written his own book of potions. Snape listed the other potion ingredients necessary so Harry really didn't need the recipe the man gave to him, but it was better to have it just in case. Now all he had to do was go out and buy his own supplies so he could brew his own potions from then on. He would have to take it every two weeks, but that wasn't a big deal.

Now that that problem was taken care of, he wondered how everything would work out with him and Malfoy. Being partners was not going to be easy. That night, Harry lay in bed wondering about the next assignment. In the back of his mind, he was also trying to decipher if Luna's remark was anything to worry about. Voldemort was gone and most Death Eaters were either locked up, executed, or in hiding. What else would there be to worry about?

**XXXXXXXXX**

It was approaching December so the weather was much colder. It had been over a week since Harry's assignment. Christmas would soon be approaching and he knew he was invited to the Weasley household for celebration. Being around his friends and his second family would be nice. It would distract him from thinking about Remus, or Sirius, or even his parents over the holidays. Harry was bored one afternoon and decided to go to Hogsmeade so he could test out his new broom. It was so much smoother than the Firebolt and it could go a bit faster as well.

While he was there he collected the ingredients he needed to brew his vision potion. Unfortunately, he ran into a bit of a problem. Snape had mentioned in his potion book that the spines of the Drake were a lot easier to get than the Ramora scales, but he didn't mention that the place to get them whole, when not inside a beauty product, was in a Dark Arts store. Or at least a store that specialized in hexes and curses, mostly because the spines turned out to be used a lot in Vine of Thorns, a dark potion used to cause immense pain. They were also used in combination with healing plants to undo certain hexes as well. The only store that had anything to do with hexes and curses, whether causing or preventing, was in Knockturn Alley.

Harry found himself not just in Knockturn Alley, where he dreaded to go, especially after defeating Voldemort, but he had to go to the one place he had dreaded since he was twelve: Borgin and Burkes. It was the large store that was known for having often illegal and ancient, or unusual items. He had accidentally used the floo network and got transported there. The other reason it made him uneasy was that Voldemort had worked there after graduating from Hogwarts in order to pick out precious items for his Horcruxes. It was unnerving, but it was the closest place that he knew of that sold them.

Pushing on the door, Harry stepped inside. The old man who he had seen before was no longer there. Standing in his place was a different older wizard who had a very stoic expression. He had straggly white hair and gleaming brown eyes.

"If you don't have money, don't bother coming in here to look around," he said gruffly.

"I do have money and I'd like to buy some Shrake spines from you," Harry said. He made sure to sound polite because he didn't want to get off on the wrong foot with him.

The man's eyes narrowed. "Shrake spines, huh? Fine."

Harry walked up to the counter slowly. He had his hand on his wand inside his robe because he wasn't sure what kind of reaction he would get if someone recognized him. The man walked to a nearby cabinet that rattled on its own. He unlocked it and pulled out a jar. He came back with it but not before the cabinet rattled again.

"How many do you need?" he asked coolly.

"I'll need a three month supply for now."

The man stared at him. "For what?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Er, for a potion. How much are they?"

"They're four galleons, sixteen sickles and eleven knuts each. That will be three jars worth."

Harry nodded and immediately pulled out his money. He had made sure to bring plenty of cash because he knew those places preferred it instead of having to deal with Gringotts, who was working very close with the Ministry. Harry knew that the Minister had made a deal with the goblins to help keep a closer eye on things including Death Eaters and any suspicious persons. They were very hard to bargain with for sure. Harry remembered that from his seventh year.

As he held out the money, the man stared directly at him and not down at the money. His eyes narrowed and Harry instantly felt a chill up his spine. His lips curled into a sneer.

"Harry Potter," he spat.

Harry's grip tightened on his wand.

The man scowled but then he snatched his money up and pushed the jars toward him.

"If you've come to also check up on my store I assure you I have nothing illegal here so the Ministry need not annoy me any more than they already have."

Spit actually flew out of his mouth as he finished the sentence. Harry just nodded. He didn't want the man to think he wasn't being watched carefully. He backed up making sure not to turn his back on the man.

The older man grinned widely. He had some blackened teeth which made him all the more creepy. "Ah, yes, cautious are we? Considering that there's no point anymore Potter I wouldn't worry your precious little head."

"What does that mean?" Harry asked firmly.

"Just because the Dark Lord is dead doesn't mean that his legacy will not be passed on and told to the next Slytherin generations. Considering that there probably will never be anyone quite as powerful or magnificent, I doubt there will ever be a revolt. So you're safe…for now."

Within seconds Harry whipped out his wand and had the man flat against the nearest wall. Harry walked forward as the man gasped and struggled against the grip.

"You listen to me carefully. I have finally gotten some peace since I killed Voldemort," he said, emphasizing the name as the man winced, "and I will not have you threatening me. Because if I feel you are at all a threat, I will tell the Minister and this place will be shut down. Perhaps the entire Knockturn Alley will be shut down. Already half of the stores are gone. So you keep that in mind."

He released the man who fell and glared at him, but made no move to retaliate. Harry stopped at the door and stared at him.

"Just for that, I think I'll let the Ministry know they need to take a trip out here."

The man grumbled but he case his eyes down and didn't say a word.

"You can either take my money and keep this place afloat, seeing as I'm sure not many people come around here anymore, since the majority of your clients were Death Eaters, or you can cause trouble and make me defend myself. I don't mind traveling far away to get what I need. So if you don't want money, let me know right now."

The man just stared at him with a frown. His eyes didn't seem so piercing now. He seemed a bit intimidated.

"Also, I want you to know that if Voldemort was so amazing and powerful and I defeated him, then I can easily do that to anyone who threatens me. Am I clear?"

The man nodded silently. Harry then lowered his wand and cast one more glance at the man before he left. Harry breathed a sigh of relief only after the door closed behind him. The man running Borgin and Burkes was most likely harmless but Harry didn't want to take any chances. He wanted every potential Voldemort supporter, or Death Eater in hiding, to know that he would defend himself if necessary and that it would be suicidal for them to try anything. He just wanted to live his life now in peace. He was finally given that chance and he wasn't going to let anyone destroy that.

Just as Harry turned a corner, getting ready to jump on him broom, he ran straight into someone. The two of them collided and the person he bumped into toppled over.

"Watch it!"

Harry stared down at Malfoy, inwardly cursing his luck.

"Potter!" Malfoy exclaimed in shock. He stood up and brushed himself off. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Harry's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I should ask you the same thing."

"Well, don't bother," Malfoy said, scowling.

He pushed Harry out of the way, making him trip and fall back into one of the stone walls. It didn't hurt but Harry was caught off guard.

"What the hell was that for?" Harry snapped.

Malfoy wheeled around. "It's enough that I have to see your bloody face in the papers and on chocolate frog cards and at bloody work, but I don't need you to be everywhere I go! It's driving me insane!"

"You don't need any help in that department," Harry said dryly.

"Shut-up, Potter!"

"You shut it Malfoy! You're a bloody arrogant ass, that's what you are!"

Harry was seething. He couldn't believe that after they had worked decently together that now Malfoy was going back to having his attitude problem. The blond was practically shaking with rage and Harry couldn't understand what he did to piss him off.

"Don't bloody insult me! I'm so sick of you Potter!"

Harry decided in a split second to use a very underhanded tactic. "This is some way to treat the person who saved your life not too long ago."

Harry knew it was a low-blow. Malfoy had probably never been able to live down the fact that Harry saved him from the fire in the Room of Requirement. Considering that Malfoy had still been on the other side at that point, for Harry to actually save him was probably an insult to him. The blond's eyes narrowed and he walked right up to him until they were inches away.

"Considering I saved your ass from the Venomous Tactula—"

"Venomous _Ten_tacula," Harry interrupted.

"—then I – I bloody don't care what its name was!" he seethed, moving his face even closer until their noises were practically touching. "We're even."

With that, Malfoy wheeled around and left Harry standing there awkwardly. It was true that Malfoy had helped him and possibly saved his life from being pricked by poison, but he hadn't exactly risked his own life for Harry, like he had for the blond. Still, he had to admit, they probably were even now. Harry angrily flew back toward his house, wondering why Malfoy had changed so drastically in just a short period of time. Now he couldn't wait for Christmas. He just wanted to have fun with his friends, with the Weasleys, and not think about Malfoy.

**XXXXXXXXX**

_Christmas Eve…_

Harry was excited because he had brewed his first batch of potion. It still needed to cool for a day so Harry decided to take the vial that he had bought from the store. He wanted to look good since it was a special occasion. He dressed in some nice black corduroy pants that were nice and fitted, along with a dark forest green dress shirt that had a collar and opened a bit at the top to expose a small portion of his collar bone. He knew he didn't have to bring anything.

Harry arrived there late afternoon and Ginny answered the door. He suddenly felt awkward but he smiled and nodded.

"Hi, Ginny."

"Harry," she smiled, embracing him, "it's so good to see you."

She gestured for him to come in and already he could smell the delicious food cooking. He still felt guilty for upsetting Ginny by not wanting to get back together with her after the Battle of Hogwarts. Ron had told her she had expected them to one day get married. Harry couldn't explain to Ron just why it couldn't work out. He didn't know himself. Ginny was really pretty, smart, kind, strong, and had a really good family. For some reason, Harry loved her, but not in the romantic sense anymore.

"How have you been?" Harry asked.

"Wonderful," she said, smiling. "I'm just so grateful that the war is over. I can't tell you how amazing it is at Hogwarts now, Harry. To not have Slytherins like Crabbe and Goyle and Malfoy, and, I mean, it's not the same without you and Ron there, but it's been a really good experience."

Harry nodded, feeling envious that Ginny didn't have to sacrifice her last year at Hogwarts.

"That's great, Gin, I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks," she said, taking hold of his arm. "Come on, you just need to sit down and relax."

She brought him into the small living room. Harry noticed that they had fixed up the old house a bit so it wasn't so crooked and lopsided. When entering the room, Harry first saw Ron, Bill and George. He was certain Charlie and Percy were around somewhere.

"Harry!" George exclaimed coming over to pat him on the back. "Bloody great to see you mate."

"Yeah, you too," Harry said smiling. He had a pang of guilt at seeing George. It must have been hard getting on without Fred around, but George and everyone else seemed to be doing alright.

"Harry," Bill said nodding toward him as he came over.

Bill still looked a bit pale like the last time Harry had seen him. He knew he was going through a lot having been bitten by Fenrir the werewolf while in human form during the Battle of Hogwarts. He had some werewolf tendencies but thankfully nothing like what Remus had to go through after he was infected by Fenrir in his wolf form. Ron had told him that Bill sometimes got the urge to howl at the moon, or became restless under a full moon, sometimes very aggressive and irritable, but not to the point that he would ever hurt someone.

"It's nice to see you again," Harry said patting him on the back.

Bill smiled and nodded. "You too. How does it feel for it to be over?"

"Yeah and to be world-wide famous again," George added with a grin.

"Er, well, it's great to be able to live life normally for once," Harry said as he sat down, "but the fame is still a nuisance. Thankfully no one's figured out where I live."

Harry didn't want to mention that Malfoy gave him the great idea of becoming "invisible" or dropping off the radar. He had looked into it after that day when Malfoy had mentioned it on the train and he was able to perform some charms to make his place undetectable. It probably didn't have as strong of charms at Grimmauld Place but it would do.

"Hey, but you landed yourself a wizard card," George said patting his arm. "I should know because I have two of you."

Harry laughed along with the rest of them.

"Hey, me and Hermione are also on those," Ron said proudly.

Harry smiled in remembrance of what happened after the Battle of Hogwarts, after Voldemort fell and everyone was cheering. It was shortly after that that the news spread, Death Eaters fled and the Ministry and Order worked hard to capture as many of them as possible. That day leaders of the Order and Ministry who were still around came up to Harry who told everyone that his friends had helped. After that, articles were written and Harry was interviewed. He would only trust Luna's father however since he would write the truth and nothing else so in The Quibbler was an article where Harry described how he defeated Voldemort and how his friends stuck close by his side and he wouldn't have been able to do it without them. That's when the Minister Shaklebolt, after he was named Minister, sent a letter to him telling him that he, along with Ron and Hermione, had been added to the chocolate card collection. When Ron had first found it he had yelled so loud Harry thought he would go deaf.

"You deserve it," Harry said in agreement.

Ron grinned and put his arm around Harry's shoulders. "You hear that. I'm the hero in the family."

George rolled his eyes. "Sure you are Ronny-kins."

Just then Percy walked in.

"Food's nearly ready," he said.

"Finally! I'm starving!" Ron exclaimed.

He stood up. "Hey Harry, want a Butterbeer?"

"Sure."

Ron left the room to get one and George plopped down next to Harry. Percy walked forward and nodded toward him.

"Hello Harry."

"Hi."

Percy was still formal with him but thankfully wasn't holding a grudge anymore. Ron had told him that while Percy hadn't said it out loud, it was obvious to him that he still felt guilty about how he treated Harry, and his family, when he was Minister Fudge's assistant. He probably still felt guilty about calling Harry a liar and not believing him about Voldemort. He just hoped that Percy wouldn't get like that again. It was obvious that Percy wasn't as easy-going or laidback as the rest of his family. He was rather uptight about things and quiet. Harry hoped he gained a sense of humor at some point.

"Harry, I heard that the Ministry has been trying to get you to work for them," Percy said.

Harry nodded. "Er, yeah, but I don't feel like being an Auror."

"Yeah, come on, give Harry a break," George said. "He's done enough fighting for a lifetime. He probably wants to do something boring now like studying history."

"Not that bad," Harry said smiling. "But I am working for a Herbology company right now."

George's eyes widened while his eyebrows rose. "Oh Merlin, it's worse than I thought."

Ron burst into laughter, as did Harry. Percy smiled a bit but otherwise remained quiet. They started up a conversation about Quidditch and then brought of stories of the crazy things they did at Hogwarts. Harry got to hear some of the stories from Bill and Charlie from when they went to school. Hermione entered the room with Ginny sometime later and joined the conversation. A while later Mrs. Weasley called them all in for dinner.

"Well, I have to say, it's the most joyous occasion to have everyone together," Mr. Weasley said beaming.

"It's absolutely wonderful!" Mrs. Weasley said, dabbing at her eyes. "I always dreamed this day would come true when we wouldn't have to live in fear. This is the best Christmas I could have asked for."

Everyone raised their glasses up high and allowed them to float up and clink together before floating back down. They all begin dishing food onto their plate. Several smaller conversations were going on, but Mr. Weasley directed his attention on Harry.

"So Harry, tell us what you've been up to."

Harry swallowed some pits of fried Goblin potatoes (not made out of Goblins). "Oh, I'm working for Helleborey in their outside research department."

"Blimey that's great," Mr. Weasley said. "Their volumes are extremely helpful to medi-wizards and witches at St. Mungo's. I've read a volume myself and I must say they're very thorough. What is their next volume?"

"Dangerous and Carnivorous Plants."

George burst into laughter and almost shot Butterbeer out his nose. "That's right up your alley Harry. Just can't stay away from danger, can you?"

Harry smiled and shrugged. "I think it rather finds me."

"That's so true," Ron interjected with a mouthful of food.

"Well, I have to say that the Ministry is finally putting forth a task force that combines the Order and Auror members to prepare in case of another war," Mr. Weasley said. "And guess what? I'm being promoted to head that department."

Cheers rang around the room and Harry smiled. He knew that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had always struggled financially so hopefully they wouldn't anymore.

"I'm just grateful those blasted Death Eaters are where they should be," Percy spoke up. "They ruined everything."

"I agree," Ron said.

"There's too many of them in Azkaban. Have they decided whether or not they're going to push for execution?" Percy asked.

Mr. Weasley shook his head. "It's been under much debate but there are definitely Death Eaters, the ones with the life sentences, that can't be rehabilitated and would only be a danger if they escaped. But execution, even the death of people like that, is still murder."

Percy just frowned and continued to eat his food.

"Let's not talk about this tonight," Mrs. Weasley said. "This is a night to celebrate and think about the peace we've obtained."

Harry was grateful for her interjection. He really didn't want to talk about Death Eaters, Voldemort, or anything related. Dinner was nice once the conversation turned to Quidditch again, and the paths that everyone was taking. Ginny was apparently toying with the idea of either becoming an Auror or becoming a teacher, like a Defense Against the Dark Arts or Charms teacher. Those were her choices, she said. Hermione was still enjoying her studies wanting to become a Medi-witch herself someday. Charlie had apparently promised to take Ron on a trip to Romania to interview with a dragon training company. They were leaving in a week and Ron was thrilled. Everyone seemed to have their lives figured out. Harry enjoyed his job so far, although his run-in with Malfoy wasn't the most pleasant situation, nor almost being stung by a venomous plant, but he still wasn't sure it was something he wanted to do forever.

Time passed by rather quickly and soon it was getting late. Hermione was sleeping over in Ginny's old room with her. Bill and Fleur were transfigured a bed in the living room and Charlie was sharing a room with Ron, and George and Percy were sharing George and Fred's old room.

"You going to stay Harry? You could squeeze in with me and Charlie," Ron said.

"Er, that's okay, Ron. Thanks but I have some things to do," Harry lied.

Ron nodded and then patted his back. "Thanks for coming Harry. See you soon."

Harry said goodbye to everyone, giving Hermione and Ginny a hug. Mrs. Weasley enveloped him a huge hug and kissed his cheek. He promised to visit more often and then he left. He wasn't sure why but he just didn't feel like staying over. He had a great time with them but the thought of being squished together in the house just for some reason didn't appeal to him that night. At the same time, he didn't exactly want to go home and be alone on Christmas Eve. He decided to go to Hogsmeade and see if there were any places open.

He flew there, loving the cool night breeze. It was very relaxing. When he got to Hogsmeade he notice that most places were closed, but as he flew around he saw that the newer place, Opaleye, where he had met Ron and Hermione, was open. He dropped down and shrunk his broom to fit in his pocket before he entered. The place was rather deserted, but there were a few people. There was one older couple, and one younger couple, and even some that came alone. Harry's stomach instantly clenched when he recognized one of the people sitting alone. It was Malfoy. He was seated at a table eating his meal. He was staring at his plate so he hadn't noticed Harry walk in. At first, Harry had the urge to duck and hide under something, but then he realized how stupid that was. Why should he be embarrassed? He had just come from a celebration and now he just wanted something a little calmer.

Harry was going to go over to the opposite side and sit by himself and enjoy some peace and quiet while surrounded by a few people. However, there was something stopping him. Earlier when he had bumped into Malfoy he had been furious at the blond's attitude but now he was wondering why Malfoy was sitting in a restaurant on Christmas Eve by himself. Had he spent any time with his family? What had even happened with Lucius and Narcissa? He wondered if Malfoy was even able to see them. He was pretty sure Narcissa was not in Azkaban, but he wasn't exactly sure what had become of them. He knew that they would have to atone for aiding Voldemort, but he wasn't sure what punishment the Ministry had decided on. Malfoy actually looked rather solemn sitting there by himself.

Before Harry even thought about what he was doing, he walked over to Malfoy's table. The blond was eating calmly and still staring down at his plate, seemingly lost in thought.

"Hey," Harry said nervously, not sure what else to say.

Malfoy glanced up and instantly his eyes widened in shock. "Potter, what are you doing here?"

"Aren't you getting tired of asking me that?" he joked.

In reality, he was trying to hide how awkward he felt. A part of him hoped that Malfoy would tell him to go away so he had an excuse to just run back home and forget he saw him. Malfoy just stared at him and Harry was suddenly feeling like it wasn't such a great idea.

"May I help you?"

Harry nearly jumped when he heard the waitress right by him.

"Er," he glanced at Malfoy who was remaining silent, "sure, just a vanilla Butterbeer please."

She nodded and instantly summoned one for him. He landed in his hand and then she walked away. Harry turned back to Malfoy, standing there by the table rather awkwardly.

"You mind?" Harry asked, gesturing to the table. His heart was pounding so hard and he didn't know why. Perhaps he was afraid that Malfoy would say something cruel like 'are you insane?' and make a scene.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow but didn't protest so Harry sat down.

"What are you doing here?" Malfoy asked him. "Don't you normally go over to the Weasel's."

Harry rolled his eyes, hoping Malfoy wouldn't start something already. He quickly took a large gulp of his Butterbeer. "Yes, I do. I just came from there actually."

Malfoy snorted and took a bite of his chicken. "So what are you doing here?"

Harry shrugged. "Didn't feel like going home yet, since it's Christmas Eve and all. Thought I'd see if any places were open. This was like the only one."

Malfoy just glanced at him but didn't really respond. He took a swig of his drink, which Harry assumed was Butterbeer, or something like it. Harry took another sip of his drink, feeling awkward about it being silent between them. So he decided to push a little.

"So, what are you doing here?"

"Having a quiet meal. Or at least I was."

Harry just glared at him. "If you want me to leave, just say so."

The blond gazed at him but his expression wasn't hostile. Harry couldn't really tell what it meant.

"I don't really care one way or the other, Potter," Malfoy said, glancing back down at his plate.

Harry was about to retort and then get up and leave, but something about the way Malfoy spoke made it seem like he was a bit down about something. So, Harry decided to be the better person, since it was Christmas Eve.

"Alright then," Harry said, taking another swig of his drink. Since Malfoy didn't care, Harry decided to stay.

Malfoy glanced at him again and noticed that he wasn't leaving. Harry stared at him and raised an eyebrow in question. Malfoy just raised an eyebrow right back, then snorted.

"So does Weasel still live in a shabby shack?"

Harry was rather surprised that Malfoy started a conversation, although he shouldn't have been surprised about the topic.

"It's fixed up a bit. Mr. Weasley just got a promotion in the Ministry so some day I'm sure they'll buy a new house."

Malfoy shrugged nonchalantly.

"What about you? Have you blown all your money already?"

"Please, Potter, I'm not careless like you."

"Wait, me? What do you mean?"

Malfoy just crossed his arms casually. "How much money did you spend on that potion for your eyes?"

Malfoy raised an eyebrow and Harry remembered that he wasn't wearing his glasses. He had decided to try the potion since he had more cooling at home. Harry shrugged.

"It was expensive but I only bought one."

"One? That's only going to last you a couple weeks," Malfoy said.

"I know, but I'm brewing it myself at home now," Harry said.

If anything, Malfoy gave him a dumbfounded look. "That's ridiculous Potter. Those ingredients are hard to come by and it takes a long time to brew. But if you want to waste your time, be my guest."

Harry just shrugged. "Whatever you say."

He didn't bother explaining how it was possible due to Snape's helpful potions book. He just figured that Malfoy would figure out something was up every time Harry went on assignments without his glasses. The waitress came by again to see if they needed anything else. They both asked for another drink. Harry got another Butterbeer, but Malfoy got a drink called a Charred Dragon – some kind of flavored drink that had a much higher alcohol content. Harry made sure to adjust his bangs while the waitress talked to them so that she wouldn't notice his scar. Thankfully she didn't say anything. However, after their drinks were summoned and she left, Harry saw Malfoy staring at him.

"What?"

"You really think flattening your bangs like that makes you impossible to recognize?" he asked with a smirk.

Harry glared at him. "It's worth a shot. Er, what's that?"

Harry pointed at his drink. Malfoy raised both eyebrows. "You've never had one?"

Then Malfoy smirked and pushed the drink over to him. Harry stared at it uncertainly and Malfoy gestured to it.

"Go on."

It was the way that Malfoy was smirking that made him nervous. Harry shrugged and let his curiosity get the best of him. He took a sip, trying not to think about the fact that Malfoy's lips had just touched the tip of it, and nearly choked when it burned down his throat. Malfoy just grinned as Harry blinked several times, pushing the drink back to him.

"That's…strong," Harry said.

Malfoy just smirked knowingly. "Not when you've had it before."

"What are you trying to do, burn your intestines?"

"Get a bit smashed, obviously, Potter. Don't tell me you've never been smashed."

Harry just shrugged. "No."

"Merlin, Potter, you are beyond hopeless," Malfoy said with a smirk.

"There's nothing wrong with having a few drinks to relax and not being smashed, Malfoy. Personally, I can't even imagine the stupid things you do when you're smashed."

Malfoy gave him an annoyed look and took another sip of his drink. "I can control myself unlike most people. You on the other hand would probably end up standing naked on top of the Ministry building claiming you're Merlin's descendant."

"I would not," Harry retorted.

Malfoy just smirked again. Harry was finding that it wasn't impossible to have a conversation with Malfoy, although he did tend to tease and be annoying through most of it.

"Really? Why don't you try it and see."

Harry wasn't falling for the bait. Obviously, Malfoy wanted to see what humiliating things Harry might do or say while intoxicated and Harry was not about to leave himself vulnerable with Malfoy.

"Why, so you can take advantage of my drunk state, steal my clothes and leave me naked on top of the Ministry building?"

Malfoy's lips curled upward. "I wouldn't waste my time Potter."

"Yeah, well, if we get another assignment like that one or worse I may consider trying that, but for now I'll pass."

"Dimitri better not give us anything worse than that or I'll hex his dick so bad he'll pee sideways."

Harry raised both eyebrows. He had a feeling some of that was the alcohol talking. "That's quite a picture, thank you."

Malfoy snorted. "Whatever. It's good money but I'm not prepared to die for it."

Harry opened his mouth and nearly blurted out 'why do you need money so bad?' but he thankfully didn't. He wasn't sure why Malfoy wanted to earn more money or why he seemed to want it so bad. Maybe he had lost a lot of his inheritance in the war, although that didn't really make sense.

"Well, I've had enough of this place," Malfoy said, standing up.

Harry stood up as well. They left their bottles on the tables and walked outside.

"Er, are you sure you should be flying after that?" Harry asked, gesturing to the broom Malfoy had summoned.

The blond snorted. "Please, it takes more than that to get me smashed Potter. For you it would only take one."

Harry clenched his jaw in annoyance. "Hilarious, Malfoy. If you run into another tree again don't blame me."

The blond got on his broom. "Like I'm that careless Potter. I just spent a lot of money on this."

Harry just realized that Malfoy was talking about his broom. It was definitely new.

"What type is that?"

Malfoy glanced at him. "This is the Comet300, the newest model," he said proudly.

Harry summoned his own. "Mine's the LightningBolt."

Malfoy gazed at his broom clearly disappointed that he had gotten one that was just as good as his.

"You better not do anything to sabotage my broom this time, Potter, or you can just hand that one over right now."

"I'm not going to do anything, and besides, you should pay more attention next time."

"Whatever, Potter, just make sure you don't do anything stupid on our next assignment," he said gently lifting off the ground. "And you better not have your dorky glasses next time either."

"I won't, although if we run into another dragon I just might let him have you," Harry retorted.

Malfoy sent him a glare as he rose up in the sky. Harry suddenly felt compelled and blurted out: "Happy Christmas."

He wasn't sure if it was the Butterbeer, or Christmas, or a combination, but even Malfoy turned to look over his shoulder in surprise. The blond seemed a bit grateful, although Harry wasn't sure if he just imagined that look in his eyes. Malfoy then smirked down toward him.

"Don't try to get on my good side Potter. I still don't trust you not to do something stupid."

With that, Malfoy flew off into the distance leaving Harry staring dumbfounded into the sky. He shook his head and just flew back to his house so he could get some sleep. As he lay there in bed he still couldn't believe that he had spent over an hour with Malfoy in that restaurant. They had talked, for the most part, like civilized people in a normal conversation. It felt so surreal. At the same time, Harry still wondered what Malfoy was doing there by himself and why he wasn't at home, at the Malfoy Manor. The questions that plagued him swam throughout his mind as he drifted off to sleep.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Author's Note: Thanks for those who have reviewed again! I have notes for you below. I will try to update asap! The chapters will most likely continue to get longer and longer. That's usually my pattern. I like to start off slow and build up. But there are some hints as to what's going to happen in future chapters! :-)

***Story Note:**And don't worry guys, I promise you very soon that Harry and Draco are going to become closer and closer, and closer….To give you a little taste, next chapter is going to be the start of some bonding. Chapter after that will get even better. And then it will progress from there. :-)

**To Reviewers: **

**messyhxdlovers****:** Hehehe well I can't tell you about the danger, but yes it's hinting at something for the future. You'll get better hints in the next couple of chapters. And more developing Harry/Draco bonding, of course. :-) YES! I know! Did you catch that I do that in every story where Harry eventually gets rid of his glasses in various ways. In Pure Rhapsody I had Fawkes heal his vision, but in Captivation it was potions also, but this is going to be slightly different. Similar, but different. I'm glad you like their conversation! Lol! Yeah, I love the banter between them as they go back and forth between getting to know each other, insulting one another, and helping one another. It's an uneasy balance that will begin to change as the story progresses. Thanks for the review! I hope to update very soon, hopefully by next weekend!

**Project Aether**** :** Thank you very much for your constructive criticism! It's nice when people balance out the good with the bad, because you know there's always both. I'm glad you like the writing style and plot so far. When you said that there was a story like this, but not exactly, out there, I was like "what? Really?" Because I totally made this up from scratch. I haven't even read fanfiction in a long time. I think the last time I read one was where Draco was working for the Ministry or something. Yeah, I know what you mean about my prologue and sometimes chapters dragging on. I'm the kind of writer that LOVES details; I mean LOVES details, lol! So I know that I put things in there that aren't necessary but I still try to make the world I'm creating believable in that way and try to make the additionally details interesting.

Harry is sometimes ignorant, but in my opinion since he didn't grow up in the wizard world he's still getting used to it. He can't possibly know everything at age 18. And Draco on the other hand has much more exposure to the world, including stories from his parents, his parents teaching him spells before he even reached Hogwarts, that sort of thing. So they are on a different level but that doesn't make Harry less powerful, promise!

Also, in regards to the Hogwarts thing and Harry not knowing some spells, well I figure Hogwarts is a lot like our high schools where they prepare you but you still don't know half of what you need to. So I was thinking that they teach them the basics but nothing as far advanced as say an Auror. Obviously if they choose that route they would be trained later on after graduation in magic that they didn't learn at Hogwarts. So that was my reasoning. Also in the books, Harry's whole 7th year was finding Horcruxes so he missed out on a year of schooling. I will mention the NEWTS eventually but basically Harry had to get tutored on everything he missed to take them. I promise you Harry is going to be just as useful as Malfoy. After all, Harry does know a lot of things that Malfoy doesn't also. I'm trying to balance that because J.K. Rowling didn't really make Harry seem all that exceptional in the books. I was expecting him to use some pretty awesome spells in the end but he never did. Anyway, I promise you everything I'm writing is completely made up from my head! I do use the Harry Potter Lexicon for creature/plant ideas and also names of some wizards. By the way, what does the BWL stand for? For some reason I couldn't figure that out! Lol! Anyway, sorry for the long response, thank you again for all your help and comments! It does help a lot! :-)


	4. Deadly Trap

**Luminescence **

**Author's Note: ****Sorry for the wait! I had finals, then Christmas, then getting wisdom teeth out. It's been hectic, but finally I was able to update this! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 3: Deadly Trap**

Almost a week had passed since Christmas Eve and Harry had continuously wondered why Malfoy had been by himself. He couldn't get the thoughts of Malfoy out of his head and it was bothering him. He needed a distraction and unfortunately the only distraction he had was going to work to do an assignment…which would be with Malfoy. Sighing irritably, Harry wondered why he even cared about what was going on with the arrogant blond. Surely he didn't care; they weren't friends after all, just coworkers. Malfoy could still be just as obnoxious as when he was at Hogwarts and Harry couldn't stand it.

He flew back home after grocery shopping and saw that there was a letter lying on the ground in front of his door. He looked around but didn't see any owl. Perhaps the owl had just gotten tired of waiting for him to come home. He picked up the letter and turned around. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled and he wheeled around. His eyes scanned the area. It was getting dark but he could still see all the trees, and the nearby houses. His placement was more like a condo in the sense that he was isolated from other people; he wasn't in a complex surrounded by other people, but rather he was in his own spot nearby a couple neighborhoods. The Minister had helped him set it up. He didn't want to pay for a condo because it was only him, so he got a one bedroom apartment and with some charms they moved it to a more private place. Harry recently charmed his apartment as well so that reporters wouldn't find him.

He turned to go back in and heard a low screech. When he turned around, he saw a large bird, possibly a hawk, flying away. It couldn't have been the bird to deliver the letter though because hawks hadn't been used since Voldemort was a kid, according to Hermione. Just another random tidbit she knew. Hawks were more aggressive and rarer than owls so they were forbidden to use for mail. They weren't even sold much as pets anymore. Harry entered his place and looked around. He felt like something was off, but nothing looked out of place. He opened the letter:

_**Assignment Two:**_

_**Your next assignment is to collect samples of Fanged Allysium, it is in the same family as Fanged Geranium. It is the sister plant to the Fanged Geranium but is much harder to find due to the fact that it can only grow in swampy climates. Be warned, this plant bites as well. You can find it in the Misty Swamp located in Geneva, Switzerland. This swamp is hidden from muggle view so you must go down by Lake Geneva and you will see what looks to be an old wall covered in vines at the end of the shoreline going north. If you say this spell: Revealus Obscruus Absconditus then the path will be revealed to you. You will be able to enter the swamp from there. I am sure that you will have no problems handling this.**_

_**Best of Luck, **_

_**Dimitri**_

Harry felt a bit excited at the prospect of another assignment. It was much shorter than the letters he usually got, but if he remembered correctly on his OWLS the Fanged Geranium wasn't deadly. It would bite and could injure someone if bitten enough, but otherwise it wasn't that dangerous. This would probably be an easier assignment than the Venomous Tentacula. Harry put his groceries away and then he thought about owling Malfoy to see when he wanted to go. For several minutes he debated, but then he decided to owl him. If they were going to be partners, they would have to learn to communicate civilly. He owled Malfoy to meet him at work so he decided to get some lunch and then fly over there.

About an hour later Harry arrived at the building and was anxiously wondering if Malfoy was there. He wasn't sure why he was anxious. To his dismay Cyprian turned the corner.

"Harry! Haven't seen you for some time," he said, grinning. "How are the assignments going?"

"Good," Harry answered reluctantly. "Er, speaking of which, I should really get going. I've got another assignment to do."

"Okay, well, I will walk with you then," Cyprian said, following beside him.

Harry wanted to tell him to bugger off, but he wasn't sure how to do it politely.

"I actually have to meet with Dimitri first in private," Harry said, thinking of the first excuse he could.

"Of course, he's so meticulous about his assignments," Cyprian said. "Ah well. Perhaps some time we can hang out when you get a break in between assignments."

"Er, yeah, maybe, I've been kind of swamped."

Harry hurried off toward the elevator and breathed a sigh of relief when he was safe inside. He approached Dimitri's office, wondering if he really needed to see him or not, when suddenly a door opened and Malfoy emerged.

"Malfoy," Harry said, halting.

The blond's eyes locked with his. He was wearing very dark jeans and a black t-shirt that was nicely fitted. The dark contrast with the shirt made Malfoy's silver-grey eyes seem to glow. Harry felt rather plain in his simple faded jeans and his dark maroon-colored t-shirt. It was a plain t-shirt that fit him nice, but wasn't quite as nicely fitted as Malfoy's, and it was simple. He also noticed that Malfoy's shirt had a lower neckline so part of his collar bone was visible. He didn't know why after all these years that he would compare himself to Malfoy or feel a bit self conscious. He chalked it off as nerves.

"I assume you got the next assignment," Malfoy said bluntly, without even a greeting.

Harry inwardly seethed, hoping that Malfoy wasn't going to be in a bad mood if they were going to work together.

"Yeah," Harry answered. "You want to go now?"

"I have some things to do first," Malfoy said, crossing his arms. "We can meet after lunch at the Three Broomsticks. We can go from there."

"Er, all right, so what time?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Let's just say two."

With that the blond walked past him and Harry instantly caught a whiff of his cologne. It was rather subtle but fresh smelling. He inadvertently stared at Malfoy and the blond caught his eye. Harry wished he had his glasses on. He suddenly felt exposed as though Malfoy could read his mind just by looking into his eyes. And if he could read his mind, he would know that Harry was feeling rather upset that Malfoy was just blowing him off. What was the blond doing there anyway so early if he was not waiting to do the assignment? Malfoy casually glanced at him but then disappeared around the corner.

Harry couldn't discern the look he gave him. Harry was about to turn and walk in the same direction to leave until he glanced toward the door that Malfoy had emerged from. Curiously, Harry walked over to it. The sign on the door read _**Archives. **_Harry pushed open the door and closed it behind him. The room was full of books and journals and papers all organized in rows of shelves. There were ones organized by year and by subject. After examining some of the books, he realized a lot of them were old potion books, or research information on various potions, magical ingredients, and all sorts of things helpful to find any magical solution. It didn't have to do with the company but seemed to be all sorts of compiled information. And to Harry's dismay, he found a section on dark magic. He cursed under his breath as he stared at the ancient books. Opening one, he found various potions that were certainly illegal now. Other books contained information on magical plants and creatures that had certain affects on a person, like changing appearances, or altering memories. Harry wondered just what Malfoy was looking for and what he planned to do with that information.

By the time two came around, Harry was feeling more and more suspicious of Malfoy. He couldn't discern what he was feeling. They kind of worked well as a team, at times, and he seemed to be a bit different than the cocky, arrogant, rude, spoiled brat he remembered, but there was still something about the blond that unnerved him. They hadn't exactly left on bad terms since Christmas Eve, but they weren't friends either.

"Potter!"

Harry wheeled around and saw Malfoy walking toward him.

"Good, still don't have your dorky glasses then?" Malfoy smirked.

Harry glared. "Can we just get this over with?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Fine with me. I've got better things to do."

Clenching his fists, Harry felt his temper boil. He hated that Malfoy made it seem like their assignments were nothing important.

"We're going to have to catch a train and then fly the rest of the way there," Malfoy said, as they walked somewhat side-by-side away from the Three Broomsticks. Harry felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle and he turned around. He didn't see anyone around.

"What?"

"Er, nothing. So, did a hawk send you your letter?"

Malfoy glanced at him and gave him an incredulous look. "A hawk? Hawks aren't used for mail anymore Potter.

Harry didn't want to tell Malfoy how strange it was that his letter was lying on the ground when he came home. Normally the owls would wait for him, or try back again, but it was just lying in the open. And then he remembered seeing that hawk up in the tree. However, he wasn't about to explain this to Malfoy. Obviously, the blond would tease him about being paranoid and start calling him Mad-Eye Potter.

"It's nothing. There was a hawk at my place that's all. I was just curious. So have you been to this location before?"

"Geneva? Or Switzerland?"

Harry was shocked that his question wasn't countered with a sarcastic remark. "Either."

"I've been to Switzerland with my parents," Malfoy said. "It was years ago when I was little though, before Hogwarts."

Harry nodded. "So this plant apparently bites, but he didn't say it was fatal so it shouldn't be as bad as our last one."

"Hopefully not," Malfoy muttered.

The two of them apparated the rest of the way to the train station and bought their tickets to Switzerland. Harry was grateful that the wizard trains were charmed to go at least three times as fast as a muggle train. He had heard Seamus blabbing one time about having a first class train experience once and there not only did they get free meals and butterbeer, but apparently first class was a separate smaller train that went even faster than the normal ones. Harry bet that Malfoy had experienced that already since his family often spent ridiculous amounts of money on things.

Thankfully, the train wasn't crowded and they found a spacious compartment to sit in. They both bought some snacks. Harry did it mostly out of boredom. Malfoy propped up his legs as he lay down on the compartment bench across from him. Harry glanced at him and watched him stick a squirming chocolate frog into his mouth. The image was just so surreal that before he realized out he chuckled loudly.

Malfoy turned to him and Harry pretended to be preoccupied with opening his sandwich.

"What's so funny, Potter?" Malfoy said after chewing.

Harry shrugged and stuffed a bite of sandwich in his mouth. Picturing the frogs legs squirming from Malfoy's mouth Harry burst into laughter again uncontrollably.

"Seriously Potter!" Malfoy exclaimed, throwing his legs over the bench. He glared at Harry. "What the hell is so funny?"

"It's nothing, it's just…"

"It's just _what_?" Malfoy snapped.

"Just the way you eat your chocolate frogs," Harry said, biting his lip to keep from laughing again.

The blond's eyes narrowed. He snatched something up and then stalked over to him. Harry glanced up as Malfoy towered above him.

"What, Malfoy? I'm just teasing. You don't have to get pissed off about everything. Lighten up."

"Fine, well two can play that game, Potter."

Malfoy stuck out his hand and Harry glanced down at the chocolate frog sitting idly in his hand.

"You want me to eat it?"

"Yes, Potter. Since you're so entertained by me eating one, let's see how entertaining you'll be."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "Malfoy, why do you always have to ruin a good moment?"  
>"What good moment, Potter? No moments with you are good."<p>

"That's not because of me. You always have to act like an asshole even when I'm trying to get along," Harry blurted out.

"Really? You mean like your 'happy Christmas' thing?" Malfoy asked, his blue eyes boring into his. "Are you rejecting my challenge, Potter? If so, then I think you and I should do things separately from now on."

Harry felt his body trembling with rage. How could he be so childish? Just because Harry thought it was funny how he ate his frog! He was actually enjoying the blond's company for once until Malfoy had to go and open his big mouth. And now he wanted them to have to deal with unknown dangers separately just because of that?

"You know that you could have never survived that dragon attack without me, Malfoy! So where do you come off threatening me? If you'd rather face the unknown by yourself with whatever Dimitri might put us through, then so be it. But you're the one who complained that it wasn't worth risking your life over. And with two of us, we're less likely to die."

Malfoy scowled. "Fine, Potter, whatever. If you don't eat this then you will have to buy me dinner for the next week."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "What? Just because I laughed! Not a chance in hell, Malfoy."

"Embarrassed Potter? Is your way of eating this even more amusing than mine?"

"Malfoy! Merlin, what the hell is wrong with you? Why are you making a big deal out of this?" Harry snapped, glaring up at him. "I'm doing this only on one condition!"

Malfoy sneered. "What's that?"

"If I do this, then you need to promise me that you'll try to get along and not be so irritating on these assignments."

"I'm not the only one who's irritating!"

"Just promise me, Malfoy!"

The blond stared at him for several seconds before finally snorting. "Fine. Here."

The blond tossed the chocolate frog in his lap but remained standing up over him. Harry sighed irritably already dreading their assignment. He quickly unwrapped the chocolate frog and just as it sprang to life, Harry roughly tried to shove it in his mouth. Unfortunately, just as he feared, the chocolate frog attempted to get away, resulting in one of its legs smacking him in the nose in the process.

Malfoy smirked. "Seems like you're a lot worse at this."

"Shut-up!" Harry said with a mouthful of frog.

The blond went back over to his seat, looking content and Harry wanted to punch him so bad. For the rest of the trip Harry lay with his hands over his chest facing the ceiling so he wouldn't have to look at Malfoy. He couldn't believe he had even thought that they could work together well. It was impossible to work well with someone like Malfoy!

The train finally stopped and they both summoned their brooms. It was a cloudy day which didn't help Harry's mood. When they got to the lake they looked for the place that Dimitri told them. They had to walk all the way down the shore but they eventually found the area surrounded in vines.

"Okay, so we say _**Revealus Obscruus Absconditus**_and then—"

Just as Harry spoke the words, a secret entrance was revealed. Malfoy shrunk his broom down and then entered first with his wand out. Harry followed behind him hoping it was going to be a quick easy assignment. It was already getting later. It was close to five so the sun would be setting in a couple hours. The first thing Harry noticed was that it was even darker in the swampy area. The fog surrounding them made it hard to see and made it feel as though it was already nighttime. They had their wands out shining light but due to the fog the light didn't help much. Harry murmured a spell that helped lift some of the fog. Malfoy glanced back at him looking a bit surprised.

"Where did you learn that spell?" Malfoy asked, sounding a bit suspicious.

"Why?" Harry asked.

Malfoy shrugged. "No reason just figured you were too clueless to know an advanced spell like that."

"I may not know a lot of spells Malfoy, but I'm not inept…," Harry trailed off. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle.

Malfoy snorted. "Neither am I, Potter."

Harry remained silent wondering why he suddenly felt like he had a pit in his stomach. They kept walking through the swamp, stepping over large muddy puddles. The fog did not seem to be lifting and in fact started to get worse. There was something about the fog that was unnatural. Even when Harry attempted his fog lifting spell, the effect wouldn't last.

"Where the hell is this plant?" Malfoy scowled.

"I don't know," Harry murmured.

Harry felt the hairs on his neck prickle again and this time he wheeled around. Something wasn't right. It felt like they were being watched, but the plant certainly couldn't have caused him to become so nervous. They trudged through the swamp and suddenly Harry stopped cold.

"Malfoy, stop."

The blond turned around. "What Potter? Tell me you see the plant."

Harry turned his head in all directions. He couldn't see anything because of the fog but something was definitely wrong.

"I hear something," Harry said quietly.

"That's great Potter," Malfoy drawled sarcastically.

"Don't move," Harry said as Malfoy took a step forward.

"Potter, don't tell me what to do."

"Something's not right," Harry hissed.

"What are you talking about?" Malfoy asked staring at him as if he had two heads.

"I think we're surrounded," Harry said, feeling the hairs on his arms rise.

Malfoy raised both eyebrows. "I think you're delusional."

"Malfoy, I'm serious!" Harry exclaimed.

"Surrounded by what? Fog? Is that what you're afraid of?" Malfoy sneered.

A crack sounded nearby and Harry wheeled around. Malfoy too turned toward the sound. It was like a twig being snapped. That's when Harry could clearly hear the sounds of footsteps, or something like that. There was a splashing sound, but it was slow, almost unsteady.

"What is that?" Malfoy asked. "It couldn't be the plant."

"Whatever it is, it's getting closer," Harry said holding his wand out in front of him.

"I'm sure it's nothing Potter, just some swamp creatures roaming about. Dimitri would have told us if there were other dangerous creatures out here."

Harry took a step back. He believed that to be true, but still his instincts were telling him to run. He heard something nearby and Harry shot a spell through the fog. He heard a thud.

"I hit something," Harry said, turning toward Malfoy. "There's definitely something out there."

"It's probably just some Gremlins or Runespoors. Stop getting all paranoid Potter."

Harry turned to glare at Malfoy. "I'm not—Ah!"

Harry gasped as something grabbed his leg and tried to pull him down. He tripped and fell onto his back. Malfoy wheeled around toward him just as the head of an Inferius appeared, with its mouth gaping open.

"Incendio!" Harry shouted.

The Inferius screamed as the fire burned it, making it shrink back into the fog. Harry scrambled back to his feet.

"Was that an Inferius?" Malfoy asked, his eyes wide.

Several low groans echoed around them and Harry backed up. Malfoy let out a yell and Harry wheeled around to see something grabbing his arm. Malfoy cursed and shot a spell that flung the Inferius backward.

"How many of them are there?" Malfoy exclaimed.

Harry shouted the fog-lifting spell and swiped his wand in a circle. The fog cleared for an instant and in that instant they saw an entire group of Inferi coming toward them.

"Shit!" Malfoy cursed. "What the hell are they doing here?"

Harry didn't have time to answer as another Inferius came at him. Soon the Inferi were closing in and Malfoy was shouting curses left and right.

"We need to get to higher ground!" Harry shouted.

"How the hell are we supposed to do that? We're surrounded!"

Harry decided that first they needed to get rid of the fog so they could actually see the Inferi before they came at them. His normal spells were not having any effect and that unnerved him. Malfoy shouted as an Inferius grabbed his leg and attempted to trip him. Malfoy stumbled and Harry wheeled around. Something grabbed his shirt and Harry was pulled up towards a decaying face. He only had to think of a spell and the Inferius was flown back away from him. He knew it wouldn't kill them. They would just keep getting up and coming toward them. Whoever was controlling the Inferi was very powerful to control such a large number. There had to be about ten of them. Harry knew the spell "finite incantatem" could stop a currently operating spell effect, but it wasn't powerful enough to subdue the Inferi.

There was nowhere to run and several Inferi were attacking them both at once. Harry knew that they couldn't keep them off for long.

"Potter! Come on! Do something!" Malfoy shouted.

Harry grinded his teeth together. Perhaps if he used "finite incantatem" in conjunction with another spell it would be powerful enough to break the spell incantation controlling the Inferi. An Inferius suddenly grabbed Malfoy's arm and pulled him towards it. At the same time another Inferius jumped toward Malfoy from behind. Harry shouted a curse that made the one behind him catch on fire. Malfoy tried to scramble back to his feet, but two of them grabbed his legs. Three of them came out of the fog reaching toward Harry and he jumped back. He shouted another spell that made the Inferi back off a little bit and he reached down toward Malfoy, grabbing him by the arm roughly.

Malfoy fought to hoist himself up not even yelling at Harry for grabbing him.

"We can't take them all at once."

Suddenly, Harry had a feeling of déjà vu when he and Malfoy were in the Room of Requirement during the Battle of Hogwarts. Crabbe had cast the unsteady Fiendfyre spell. If Harry used that in conjunction with finite incantatem, it might be strong enough to destroy the Inferi. The only problem was that the Fiendfyre spell was very dangerous and unreliable. It was cursed fire, dark magic, made up of flames of abnormal size and heat that could crumble objects to soot instantly. If left burning long enough it could take the shape of fiery beasts and pursue any humans, which would endanger him and Malfoy, just like what happened in the Room of Requirement. But the incantation was a mixture of a spell and a curse combined. It was powerful ancient magic, like the bond of blood was when his mother sacrificed herself and then Dumbledore cast a charm that Aunt Petunia sealed to protect Harry from Voldemort. It was ancient magic like that so it had to work. It was very powerful, but hard to control. That's why Hermione thought it was too dangerous to use it on Voldemort's Horcruxes even though it would have been as effective as the Gryffindor sword. It was their only shot though. Nothing else he knew of would be powerful enough to stop the Inferi, not this many of them. He remembered when Dumbledore had shot enough fire from his wand at the Inferi when they were in the cavern together. The Fiendfyre would work, it had to!

The Inferi reached out towards them and despite their efforts at throwing spells at them several more came in their place.

"Malfoy, get ready to run!" Harry shouted.

The blond shouted a spell and turned toward him. "What are you going to do?"

"Fiendfyre!"

"Are you insane?" Malfoy shouted. "That could kill us!"

"Got any other bright ideas?" Harry shouted, kicking one of the Inferius in the face, which only made it stagger a couple steps.

The Inferi were so close now they only had a couple of feet between them. They were on all sides and reaching at once. Some of them were clawing at the ground, dragging their dead corpses toward them. Harry gripped his wand tightly and suddenly raised it in the air. Malfoy's eyes widened.  
>"<em>Fiendfyre<em>!" Harry shouted.

Blue flames shout out from his wand and Harry directed it in front of them. It blew apart the fog and hit several Inferi directly. Unfortunately, more were coming from behind. Malfoy shouted a spell to try and shield them but the Inferi broke through it. One of the Inferius grabbed Malfoy by the neck and pulled his face up to it as it opened its mouth. Harry pointed his wand directly at the Inferius whose vacant eyes turned toward Harry. He released more blue flames, struggling to keep his wand steady. The flames poured out and Harry knew that the only way to get a handle on them was to combine it with the other spell.

"Finite in –" Harry was interrupted as one of the Inferius tore at his shirt, screaming as it tried to take a bite out of him. "Finite Incantatem!"

A white spark flew out of his wand combining with the blue flames already pouring out. A huge blast erupted around them knocking Malfoy to the ground and causing Harry to lose balance. He fell to one knee and almost dropped his wand. Malfoy's wand had fallen from his hands and he struggled to scoot away from the Inferi closing in around him. Malfoy was completely surrounded and Harry could see the Inferi reaching out for him. Harry felt his blood boil and suddenly a huge eruption of blue flames burst forth. Harry struggled to keep a steady grip on his wand and turned his body a complete 360 to make sure the flames surrounded them. The flames took off of their own accord reaching up toward the sky as it began swarming around them like a blue fiery tornado. He heard Malfoy scream and Harry directed his wand toward the group of Inferi hovering over the blond. The Inferi closest to him erupted in flames and burnt to ash. Harry ran toward Malfoy, shouting spells to get the others away.

"Accio wand!"

Harry summoned Malfoy's wand and threw it toward him. Malfoy threw off two of the Inferi, both of which burned to cinders as soon as their bodies were touched by the Fiendfyre. The Inferi were getting burned completely, but unfortunately both Harry and Malfoy were also surrounded by the blue fiery tornado. One of the Inferi released an inhuman cry as its legs were burned off. It kept crawling toward Harry despite this. The blue flames began to enclose around them and Harry backed up until he was standing right next to Malfoy who finally had gotten back on his feet.

"Damnit, Potter! Now what?"

Harry realized that the combination of spells had lifted the fog around them so they could see better. There were only a few Inferi left coming at them slowly. He saw out of the corner of his eye, nearby one Inferius, a small swamp.

"If we run towards that we can jump in and be safe from the fire," Harry shouted, pointing.

Malfoy stared at the swamp. "How the hell do we get there through this?"

"We wait until it becomes a fiery beast! Once it gets out of control it will merge together giving us some space to run."

"That's your brilliant plan?" Malfoy countered. "Wait until it gets powerful enough to swallow us whole? It can incinerate us in seconds!"

"I realize that Malfoy!" Harry snapped.

The flames exploded knocking them both on the ground. It swirled together creating a massive beast that resembled a dragon. During the process it ate up all the Inferi except for the one crawling on the ground to get to them. Harry had been knocked down so hard by the blow that he didn't even notice the crawling Inferi until it was on top of his legs. The Inferi screamed as it bit down onto Harry's pants.

"Get off!" Harry shouted.

A blow threw the Inferius off of him and he realized that Malfoy had been the one to cast the spell. The beast grew to huge proportions and Harry knew that it would explode destroying everything around it.

"RUN!" Harry shouted.

The two of them scrambled to their feet, jumping over the crawling half-burnt corpse of the last Inferius. They ran as hard as they could toward the swamp. Harry looked behind him to see the last Inferius swallowed up by the flames as it exploded out toward them. Despite his fear of drowning, since he still didn't know how to swim well, Harry dove into the water without another thought. He heard a similar splash beside him and could barely see another figure beside him under the murky water. The blue flames lit the surface of the swamp on fire. Harry could see the flicking blue flames swirling above him. He tried not to panic under water as he fought to flail his arms in an attempt at keeping himself near the surface so as not to sink to the bottom.

The flames began to die down just as Harry was running out of oxygen. He flailed his arms, trying to reach his way to the surface. He saw something brown floating nearby and reached his arms up to grab at it. It was thankfully a dead piece of a tree and he was able to pull himself up through the surface of the water by grabbing hold of it. Harry breathed heavily as he gripped the tree log with all his might.

"POTTER!"

Harry cringed as he heard Malfoy angrily scream out his name.

"You could have killed us!"

"We got away from them didn't we?" Harry countered back, trying to push his sopping bangs out of his face.

Harry turned in the water with the log to see Malfoy swimming towards the shore. The blond got out of the water and began to ring his shirt out. Harry was torn between kicking while holding onto the log and trying to make a swim for it without looking like an idiot.

"You going to float out there all day, Potter, or what?" Malfoy snorted.

"Shut-up, Malfoy! If it wasn't for me yo—"

Harry's words were muffled as his body was suddenly yanked under the water. He screamed under water as he felt something sharp scrape against his back and torso. Something was clawing at him. He wasn't even sure what spell he thought of, in fact, he even forgot he had his wand in his hand. Whatever it was he shouted sent sparks out that caused the creature to swim away. He saw the ripples of the water and he pulled himself back up gasping for air. Harry coughed, wincing every time he took a breath.

"Potter! Get the hell out of the water! Are you stupid or something? Hurry up before the Grindylow comes back!"

Harry remembered Remus teaching them about Grindylows in their third year. He knew that they lived on the bottom of lakes and swamps and were native to Britain but could be found elsewhere. They had long sharp, brittle fingers used to grip their prey so they can drag them underwater to eat them. Harry winced as he felt the pain in his back. The water began splashing and Harry could see that the Grindylow was coming back.

"Potter, get out!"

"I can't, it…it attacked me. I won't be able to swim well."

Malfoy cursed. "Wingardium Leviosa!"

Harry felt his body rise up out of the water. Malfoy was levitating him. Harry breathed a sigh of relief and then suddenly gasped as the water demon jumped up, opening its wide sharp green teeth toward him.

"Incendio!" Harry shouted.

As fire shot out of his wand, the demon screeched and hurled itself back into the depths of the swamp. Harry felt his body land on the ground and he was relieved. He had had a legitimate excuse for not being able to swim so Malfoy wouldn't know that he couldn't. He didn't even know why he was so embarrassed about it. His life was in danger and he should have just tried to swim, but he knew he wouldn't have been fast enough to reach the shore before the Grindylow caught him.

"Seriously Potter, whenever I'm with you there's always something that goes wrong!" Malfoy shouted.

Harry attempted to get up and hissed with pain. He gripped his stomach as he slowly staggered to his feet.

"Malfoy, shut-up!" Harry hissed, clenching his jaw. He was in pain and was not in the mood to be arguing over something stupid.

He wasn't sure why but the blond didn't make another comment.

"Damnit! Now we have no idea where the hell we ended up now and we still haven't found the plant!"

"We should just come back some other time," Harry said, trying to hide how much pain he was in.

"What? After what we just went through! No way in hell, Potter! Since we're here and since the Inferi have been destroyed we are going to try to find it! Besides, we have to find our way out of this place anyway so we might as well search for it as we go."

Harry winced but realized that his injuries were not fatal so he just walked behind the blond. It stung him to move, but at least they were alive. They walked for about ten minutes. Harry was feeling a bit weary but he was relieved that the worst seemed to be over. However, he could feel blood trickling down his back.

"Malfoy, let's just give up."

"Hold on, Potter! It's got to be around here!"

They walked around towards some nearby trees over by a small pond. Harry was about to just yell at Malfoy for them to leave when he heard the blond cry out.

"Goddamnit!"

He looked over to see a long vine wrapped around Malfoy's arm and fangs were sprouting from the end of it. It snapped at him again and Malfoy cursed shooting a spell so the vine would let go.

"Well, looks like you found it," Harry said flatly. "Hurry up and take a sample, will you?"

"Shut-up, Potter!" Malfoy snarled. He hissed a spell and the plant snapped at him several times. In one swipe, Malfoy cut off the head of one of the fanged ends. He scooped it up into a vial.

"Dimitri is paying us double for this!" He snapped heatedly.

Harry just sighed, feeling grateful they could go back now. The two of them managed to find their way out since the fog had lifted. It was very strange how the fog was suddenly no longer there. When they got to the train station, Harry just about collapsed into a seat. He groaned in pain and Malfoy glanced over at him.

"What the hell's the matter with you?"

Harry gazed at him. "The Grindylow, remember? It attacked me."

"Where?"

"On my back mostly, but also on my stomach," Harry said.

"Well, you're not dying Potter," Malfoy said, sitting back in his seat.

"Thanks Malfoy," Harry drawled. "I'll remember this moment for when you get injured."

Malfoy opened his mouth to retort but their compartment door opened and in walked an older witch with a trolley of goods. Harry instantly bought a butterbeer, hoping it would make him feel better. The blond actually looked worn out. His hair was disheveled and his clothes were dirty and still damp. They actually rode the entire way in silence. When they got back it was already too late to go back to the building.

"We'll just have to go see him tomorrow morning for our pay," Malfoy scowled.

Harry nodded slightly as he was too exhausted to do much else.

"And I'm going to have a word about him sending us into a nest of Inferi!"

"I doubt he knew about it," Harry said.

Malfoy glanced at him and then shrugged. "Whatever."

The blond then took off in the direction of his home. Harry took his time getting home and when he arrived he realized something was off. The protections he had set up for his apartment didn't put up much of a fight as he got inside. In fact, he noticed that somebody must have been tampering with them. Feeling unnerved again, Harry checked the house thoroughly before putting up more protections. He would have to take up Malfoy's suggestion of becoming "invisible" so that nobody except the Ministry would know where his house was. Now he wasn't so sure that the Inferi was a coincidence. Somebody obviously knew about his new job and somehow knew where he would be. It occurred to him that the letter Dimitri sent to him, which was lying on the ground, must have been how the person found out where he was going to be. Was he reading too much into it, or was the attack a coincidence?

Harry entered his bathroom once he was sure his place was safe. He took off his clothes and examined his back. There were long cuts down his back and a couple down his torso, but other than that they weren't that deep. The blood had mostly dried so he took a shower to clean up the cuts. Once he was finished, he got dressed and slipped into bed. He lay there thinking about what had happened. He wondered briefly if Luna had been trying to warn him the other day. There was no way she could have known that would happen, could she?

Eventually, Harry got to sleep, but when he woke up the next morning he still felt tired. Ron had owled him back to meet him for lunch so Harry pushed his thoughts away. They met up in Hogsmeade at The Three Broomsticks.

"Harry! Hey, how's the new job going?" Ron asked, patting his back.

Harry sighed heavily.

"Er, what's wrong mate?"

"Well, the job is proving to be much more dangerous than I thought."

Harry explained to Ron what had happened the previous night.

"Blimey! Inferi! Do you think it was a trap?"

"I don't know, but I'm certain Dimitri wouldn't have sent u—me out there if he had known Inferi could be lurking around. Besides, I know that Inferi are created using dark magic so someone had to have created them and let them loose there."

"That's creepy," Ron said. "You don't think it was Death Eaters, do you?"

"I don't know, maybe."

"From what my dad said, most of the Death Eaters have been captured. I mean there are still some I'm sure in hiding, but why would they attack you openly like that?"

"I don't know. It doesn't make sense."

"You know, maybe it was the Malfoys!"

Harry almost choked on his drink. He had been dreading telling Ron and Hermione that he was working with Malfoy so he failed to tell Ron that he hadn't been alone the previous night.

"My dad told me that Lucius is in Azkaban right now. I don't think he's going to be let off easy, if they haven't already decided how long he's going to be there. And Malfoy's mum I think is getting House Arrest."

"What about Malfoy?" Harry asked quietly.

Ron shrugged. "Unfortunately, I don't know about him. Technically dad says that he was a juvenile at the time so they'll probably go easier on him, especially if he was forced into doing things, but I still hope he's punished good. You better be careful though. If Malfoy wants revenge on you for killing You-Know-Who and putting his dad in Azkaban he'd probably go so far as to set Inferi on you."

Harry wanted to laugh aloud considering Malfoy had almost been killed by them as well, but he just nodded. He wasn't sure what to say.

"I'll just have to keep my eyes open. Would you be able to ask your dad about how I can put up protections on my apartment so I'm invisible to anyone looking for me?"

"Yeah, sure, Harry. That's a good idea! Oh, by the way, Charlie said he got me an interview! I get to leave in a week to go to Australia!"

"Oh, er, congratulations."

Ron beamed at him.

Harry wanted to feel happy for him, but he was feeling rather envious that Ron was getting a great opportunity and he was stuck with Malfoy and potentially someone who wanted to kill him…again.

"You know, maybe you should talk to the Minister about everything that's been going on. He may be able to help you figure out who might be behind it."

Harry nodded. "That's not a bad idea. The Minister invited me to this celebration in a couple of weeks anyway so I guess I'll go there and talk to him then."

Ron nodded as he stuffed his face with food. Harry ate slowly thinking about Malfoy and wondering what was going on with him and his family. He still remembered how Malfoy was alone for Christmas Eve and he still wondered why that was. If his mother was on House Arrest, why wasn't he at home with her? Unless…maybe he wasn't allowed inside. No, that didn't make sense. It was Malfoy's home too and where else would he live if he wasn't allowed at the Malfoy Manor?

"Harry!"

Harry blinked out of his daze. "Er, sorry, what?"

"I was just asking you if you think you'll continue this job."

"Oh, er, probably for now. I'll talk to Dimitri about what happened and maybe he'll send me on easier assignments. It is good money and for the most part I like it," Harry said shrugging.

"Is it what you really want to do though?" Ron asked curiously.

"I honestly don't know. It's fine for now."

Ron decided to drop the subject and focused on talking about Quidditch. Since Harry had to meet up with Dimitri by 11, he said goodbye to Ron and went off to work. When he arrived at Dimitri's office, he realized, upon walking in, that Malfoy was already there.

"Ah, Potter, there you are," Dimitri said, looking concerned. "Mr. Malfoy here was just telling me about what you two encountered the other night. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, just some cuts from a Grindylow, but nothing major," Harry said, glancing at Malfoy who gazed back at him.

"I am so sorry, if I had known…," he trailed off. "It just doesn't make any sense. Of course, I will pay you double for your troubles, but that's just very strange. Inferi shouldn't be walking around, especially out in swamps. I may have to bring this to the attention of the Minister. Please let me know if anything else suspicious happens."

Harry and Malfoy both nodded. Dimitri levitated their pay to them. "It will probably be a couple of days at least before the next assignment. Why don't you both rest up a bit and recuperate."

Dimitri excused them and Harry opened his envelope to see that they did indeed get double pay.

"Well, I guess it was worth it this time," Malfoy said, counting his own money. "But he better not send us anywhere like that again."

"Yeah, er, Malfoy?"

The blond turned around. "What, Potter?"

"Have you seen anything suspicious?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Er, never mind."

He decided not to mention his apartment protections at the moment, not until he had a chance to talk with the Minister. He hoped it was just his imagination.

Malfoy turned around to walk away and Harry watched him leave. He wasn't sure what to make of Malfoy, but perhaps he should keep a closer eye on him.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**To Reviewers: **

**messyhxdlovers :** thank you! I'm glad you like detail! =) I definitely love detail myself. Don't worry if you can't give constructive criticism. As long as you enjoy the chapters that's good enough for me. Yes, I agree, some chapters tend to have more things going on at once. Usually I do that because I'm setting up for something to happen, but I do agree that it's better to have one big thing, like in this chapter. There will be more chapters like this and they will start to get closer very soon! Sorry this took so long. I had finals, and then wisdom teeth removal so finally I got a chance to update this. I won't take as long next time!

**HPmeghan7474 :** Awww, thank you so much! I'm so glad that you liked Captivation! Hopefully this one will be just as good! Sorry that this took a little while to update. I had finals and then had to get my wisdom teeth out and then of course Christmas and everything, but now I'm back again! It shouldn't take me too long to come out with the next chapter! I'm glad I could come back to fanfiction too. School was consuming my life for a while so I didn't have a chance to update any new stories until recently. I promise to try and update asap!


	5. Bound By Fate

_**Luminescence **_

_**Author's Note: **_Hey guys! I updated a lot sooner this time! The romance will be starting to bloom shortly! I should hopefully have the next chapter out soon. My classes start up again tomorrow so I'll really only have weekends, but I promise not to make you wait too long.

**Chapter 4: Bound By Fate **

A couple days later, Harry had received a concerned owl from Hermione regarding the events that happened. Mostly she scolded him for using such dangerous magic as the Fiendfyre, although she stated she was thankful he survived. Then she went into discussing her mediwitch program and how much she was enjoying it. Harry was happy for his friends, but he just wished his life would get more on track. He thought for sure everything would be normal with Voldemort gone, but that was not the case. He promised her that they would meet up soon and in fact even invited her to the celebration at the Ministry.

Sighing, Harry got into the shower and inspected his wounds. They were healing fine thankfully. By the time he got out of the shower, he had another letter but it was from Neville. He wanted to meet up for lunch at the Crux Inn in Hogsmeade. Harry sighed heavily, not sure what he should tell Neville. At this point, he really had no one else to talk to. He didn't feel comfortable bringing up Malfoy with Ron or Hermione and he felt rather guilty about that.

Neville was sitting at a table when Harry walked in. The taller boy waved him over.

"Harry, it's great to see you! I heard you got the job!"

"Yeah, thanks to you," Harry said smiling. "How are things with you?"

"Very well," he said. "I've been applying for some study trips so I can shadow some experts in the field. That way I'll be able to explore other countries and such before I decide if I want to move elsewhere."

"Oh, that's great," Harry said. He had this sinking feeling that pretty soon all his friends would no longer be around. It was just part of moving on with life, it didn't mean he wouldn't see him again. Somehow he was still feeling like he was the only one not moving forward.

"Yeah, so how do you like the job so far?" Neville asked in excitement.

Their drinks floated over to them and Harry took a large gulp. "Er, well, it's very interesting and I like Dimitri a lot, but….there is something that happened."

Neville leaned forward. "What?"

"Well, first off, I got assigned a partner, which wouldn't be bad if it hadn't been Draco Malfoy of all people."

"Bullocks! No way!" Neville exclaimed, wide-eyed. "I didn't even think he liked Herbology."

"Me either. Well, then something else happened. Malfoy and I got sent on another assignment, our second one, and it felt like it was a trap. All of a sudden – and mind you we were only searching for the Fanged Allysium – we were attacked by Inferi."

"Inferi!" Neville choked. "That means…was someone controlling them?"

"I assume so but whoever sent them wasn't there. I told Dimitri about it and he seemed rather concerned too. Ron and Hermione suggested I talk to the Minister about it, but I don't know what good that will do. It's not I have any clue who could've sent them. Do you think I'm being paranoid?"

"If it were anyone else but you, I would say yes," Neville said. "But, well, with Death Eaters being put away and possibly going to be executed…"

"There could be Death Eaters out for revenge," Harry finished sullenly.

Neville gave him an empathetic look. "I'm sorry, Harry. That's a bum deal. Maybe they can assign you to work on research in the building. That might be safer."

Harry pictured having to deal with Cyprian on a regular basis. "Er, no, it's fine for now. Dimitri said he was going to be extra careful with the next assignments. Also, I haven't, er, told anyone else that Malfoy and I are partners. Ron seems to think that Malfoy was behind the Inferi attacks, but since he almost died with me I'm thinking that's not the case."

Neville smiled knowingly. "Ron would love to pin anything on Malfoy. I mean, don't get me wrong, he was an arrogant arse and I'd love to see him get a taste of his own medicine, but at the same time I do feel kind of bad for him. I know his family life has never been great, despite how it may have appeared, and I'm sure it's hard for him with his parents being put on trial and all."

Harry nodded. Their food arrived at that time and he took a bite of his sandwich. "Well, I wouldn't go so far as to say that Malfoy isn't harmless, but I don't get the feeling he's after me. It seems that lately he's more into money."

Neville quirked an eyebrow. "Really? That's shocking. I thought his parents would have him all set."

"Me too. Well, so far nothing else has happened. I just…er…wanted to tell someone and I know how Ron feels about Malfoy so…"

"Of course, Harry, you can always talk to me about anything," Neville said. "So, what are you going to do?"

"I still like the job so I'm sticking with it. I'll have a talk with the Minister and see if he can give me an idea of how many Death Eaters are in hiding and who they might be. That might narrow down a few suspects. Otherwise, I'll just be careful. Who knows, maybe me and Malfoy were just there at the wrong time, but it doesn't seem like that could be a coincidence."

Neville shook his head. "No, that seems much too strange. If it was any other creature that didn't need to be created out of dark magic and controlled, I would say maybe, but that's pretty suspicious."

"Yeah."

Neville suddenly leaned forward. "You know, Harry, there's a potion that you could use, along with a spell, which could help you monitor Malfoy, if you really thought you needed to keep an eye on him."

Harry leaned forward as well. "Really? What does it do?"

"Uh, well, it's kind of…illegal," Neville said sheepishly. "Basically, I believe it works like a tracking device so that you're aware of where the person is going. I know that you can make it yourself, because I'm sure nobody sells it anymore, but I don't know how difficult it could be to get the ingredients. I think that the recipe for it could be in the Archives at the Hellibore Building."

Harry nodded. "Okay, er, what's it called?"

"I think it's called The Tracking Potion, I'm not sure. If you look under key words like monitoring or tracking or something you should hopefully be able to find it."

"All right, thanks."

Neville nodded. "Hope that goes well, Harry. Uh, please don't let anyone know I told you about it. Gran would kill me."

Harry smiled. "Your secret's safe with me."

After saying goodbye to Neville, Harry wasted no time in going to the Hellibore Building. He wanted to make it seem like he was following up since their last assignment had just ended a couple days ago. The building was thankfully pretty empty when he walked in. Perhaps most of them were still at lunch. Harry went into the Archives room again, knowing that it was off limits. This time it happened to be locked and he wondered how Malfoy had gotten in. He used a more advanced form of the spell Alohomora, which he learned from Aberforthe during his quest for the Horcruxes. Harry tried to find some sort of index and instead just murmured a spell in the air looking for something akin to binding. Several books popped out dangling from their places on the shelves. Harry went around to each one searching for some kind of clue.

One book that he pulled was titled: _Ancient Magic: Lost or Forgotten?_ Harry opened up the book and looked under the index tab. There was a section for various kinds of potions so unfortunately he had to skim all the types. There were ones for changing appearances again, ones for gaining skills temporarily, ones for eavesdropping, but none had anything to do with tracking. Then Harry's eye caught sight of something mentioning tracking enemies. He read a bit further and skimmed some of the potions there. One of them, _The Adstringo Potion_, stood out to him. He flipped to the next page and began reading about it. There was a list of ingredients and a small note was written under it: _**for thy to be bound to know the truth and know thy enemies more than thy friends, is to be truly omnipresent. **_It wasn't much to go on, but it seemed like it was the right kind of potion. Unfortunately, the ingredients called for something personal of the target, like a piece of hair or clothing. Harry cringed. It reminded him of Polyjuice potion. How was he going to get something personal from Malfoy?

Harry jotted down the ingredients and some notes on how to brew it properly. When he went back to his place he even looked it up in Snape's potion book, but he couldn't find it. He wasn't sure exactly how safe this potion was being since it called for him to drink it, but it didn't sound fatal either. He went to pick up all the other ingredients he needed first. He would have to figure out how to get something of Malfoy's later.

A couple minutes later after he arrived back home an owl tapped on his window. It was a letter from Ron:

_Harry,_

_I checked with my dad about you becoming "invisible" with advanced protections on your place and he said you have to see the Minister about it. All you have to do is fill out a simple form and the Minister can give you the protections. Apparently, it's more than just saying some spells with your wand. Dad wouldn't really give me a straight answer so sorry about that. Talk with the Minister right away so that you can get protected in case Malfoy or Death Eaters try attacking you. Good luck mate and keep in touch._

_Ron_

Harry sighed heavily. No matter what he did to avoid a meeting with the Minister it just wasn't happening. Harry finally caved in and wrote a letter to the Minister to meet with him. He also answered the Minister's letter from weeks ago requesting his presence at the celebration and Harry let him know he would be attending, and most likely bringing a friend. He hoped Hermione or Neville would be available so he didn't have to go alone.

A knock came at his door. Actually, it was more of a pounding. Harry immediately tensed. He grabbed his wand and slowly approached the door. The pounding happened again.

"Potter! Are you in there?"

Harry immediately straightened up, shocked. He went to the door although his heart was still pounding. He opened it to see Malfoy standing there looking breathless and not happy.

"Malfoy, what are –"

"What the hell is going on?" Malfoy snapped, pushing past him as he entered his apartment.

Harry immediately felt himself panic. His first thought was that he hadn't really cleaned the place. Thankfully there were only a couple of dishes in the sink. It was his bedroom that was the real disaster and there was no reason for Malfoy to go in there. Harry closed the door and walked toward the fuming blond.

"What are you talking about?"

Malfoy's eyes narrowed as they bored into him. "What am I talking about?" he gestured angrily. "First we have that damn Inferi attack and then last night when I got home late I enter my apartment and do you know what happens, Potter?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "No, what?"

He mentally noted that Malfoy was definitely not living at the Malfoy Manor. He said he had an apartment, which explained why he needed some money. Perhaps his parents had disowned him and refused to give him his inheritance.

"I was nearly eaten alive by my furniture, that's what!" Malfoy bellowed. "If I hadn't had my wand in my hand when I tried to sit down on my couch, it would have swallowed me whole and suffocated me!"

"Your furniture attacked you?" Harry asked in disbelief. "You mean, like, someone had been in your place?"

"Yes, Potter!"

Harry instantly felt the hairs on his neck prickle. "Something happened to me as well."

Malfoy seemed to calm down and straighten up. "Your furniture was jinxed too?"

"No, but I noticed that someone had definitely been trying to get in. They had tampered with my protections but I don't think they actually got through them."

"What the hell kind of protections do you have?" Malfoy drawled. "Something the Minister specially had his group of Aurors set for you?"

"Er, no, they're my own protections," Harry said, feeling his blood boil. "And just because Minister Shacklebolt and I are friends doesn't mean that he's just going to do anything for me."

"Right, sure, Potter," Malfoy said, snorting. "What the hell does this mean? Is this person after both of us?"

"I don't know, but that can't be a coincidence."

"You see, Potter, this is why I don't like being around you, because danger follows you wherever you go!" Malfoy snapped.

Harry glared. "Thanks, Malfoy, well it seems to follow you as well. Do you really think that if this person was just after me that they would be charming your furniture?"

"If they knew we worked together maybe," Malfoy shot back. "I don't really know and I don't really care, Potter, what I want is a solution so I can go home and not think my bed might attack me!"

Harry breathed out heavily. "Look, I don't know what's going on, but I'm planning on going to see the Minister soon. I owled him today so hopefully he can meet with me today and hopefully he can do something."

"Good," Malfoy said, crossing his arms. "He better because I hate paying for a room at an inn, they're so bloody overpriced!"

Malfoy then stepped closer to Harry. "You will owl me the second that you meet with him."

"Fine," Harry said.

Malfoy stared at him for several minutes and then he uncrossed his arms and headed for the door. Harry slowly followed him toward the door. Malfoy opened the door and stepped out. Harry watched him leave before shutting the door. Obviously this proved that Malfoy wasn't the one after him since he was also a target. Ron would be very disappointed.

A few hours later, Harry received a reply from the Minister asking to meet with him. Harry flew over to the Ministry building and hesitantly walked inside. He took the elevator up to the Minister's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Harry opened the door and saw Minister Shaklebolt sitting at his desk scribbling something down. He had a ton of parchment on his desk and Harry couldn't even imagine how much work he had put in cleaning up after Minister Scrimageour.

"Harry! It's so nice to see you again," Minister Shaklebolt smiled as he reached out to shake his hand.

"Nice to see you too," Harry said, smiling back.

"It's been a while. Glad to see that you're doing well. I've heard that you got a new job."

Harry raised an eyebrow. He chuckled.

"It's my job to know everything. It just happened by chance that rumors began spreading that Harry Potter was working at Heleborey."

Harry shook his head. He should have known someone there would spread it around.

"So, how do you like it?"

Harry took a seat and Minister Shaklebolt floated some tea toward him.

"It's good, although…it's been taking a turn for the worst, which is why I'm here."

The Minister's eyebrows furrowed. "How so?"

Harry explained what happened with the Inferi and how Dimitri knew nothing about it.

"I noticed right before that happened that the letter that Dimitri usually sends me is sent by an owl who waits until I'm home or who comes back later, but the letter had just been lying there on the ground for anybody to read."

The Minister nodded, pursing his lips. "So you think someone read it and realized where you would be."

"That's the only thing I can think of. I didn't think much of it at the time. Also, there was a hawk in a nearby tree kind of watching me and when I picked up the letter and noticed the hawk, it took off. That might just be a coincidence, but…"

"Or maybe not. Perhaps this…person used a hawk to intercept the owl that was supposed to wait there with the letter. That way the letter was easily accessible once the owl was out of the way and they just made it seem as though the owl had grown impatient and left the letter lying on the ground."

Harry nodded in agreement. "And then the other day it seemed as though someone had tried to break into my place because my protections were weakened, as though someone had tampered with them. I didn't notice anything out of place, but I'm not the only one that happened to."

"Who else?" he asked.

Harry cleared his throat. "Er, my, er, partner, Draco Malfoy was there when the Inferi attacked and that wasn't a coincidence because Malfoy is my partner on all my assignments. Just today he told me that he had to move to an inn because his furniture attacked him last night."

"That's a pretty nasty hex," Minister Shaklebolt said. "In my days as an Auror I've seen how those dark possession hexes can take root in anything, including inanimate objects and it can kill people."

"Yes, Malfoy said his couch tried to swallow him whole and suffocate him."

Kingsley shook his head. "That's not a good sign. I suppose I'll have to send Aurors out to look at both of your places and see if we can figure out who might be behind them."

"Do you know which Death Eaters are still at large?"

"As far as I know, the most dangerous ones have been put away, the ones closest to Voldemort anyway. All the ones that you noticed beside him are in Azkaban, the ones that are alive anyway. Besides a few strays out there who weren't in the ranks of his top supporters, I don't know who would dare to go up against you, or who would be powerful enough to know advanced dark magic like that. I can certainly look into it."

"And er, the Malfoys are…"

Minister Shaklebolt nodded. "If Draco is indeed being attacked then his parents wouldn't be involved, but I assure you that Lucius Malfoy is in Azkaban and Narcissa is on House Arrest. She can't leave Malfoy Manor and we have taken her wand away so she can't use magic. She is also being monitored by Aurors to make sure that she doesn't leave or abuse her privileges. There's no way either of the Malfoys could be behind it."

Harry nodded, swallowing thickly. He wondered if that was why Malfoy had been alone. Maybe he wasn't allowed in Malfoy Manor to see his mum. He doubted that many people were allowed to visit Azkaban either.

"Er, Ron mentioned to me that you can become invisible and have extra protections?"

"Yes, you can, but unfortunately it's not possible at this time. Those are rather advanced spells that require magical objects that have unfortunately gone missing among lots of things before the war. No doubt they were stolen or used for nefarious purposes. We are still looking for them, but without those items the spells would be no more effective than the spells you have cast on your place."

Harry glanced down at his teacup. Malfoy was going to be pissed.

"If you don't mind me making a suggestion, Harry."

Harry glanced up. "Sure, Minister."

Minister Shaklebolt smiled. "Call me Kingsley, Harry, no need to be so formal around me."

Harry nodded with a smile. "Of course, Sir, er, Kingsley."

"You still own Grimmauld Place, do you not?"

Harry blinked. Of course, why hadn't he thought of that?

"Er, yes, Sir, I do."

"That might be the safest place for you right now until we figure out who's behind this. It still has its protections up from when the Order was there, so not only is it specially protected, but it is also invisible."

"Yes, that's actually a great idea, Kingsley. Er, do you think the items used to make it invisible are still there?"

"Most likely not. Once the spells are cast the items are no longer needed to remain in that place."

"What kind of items are they?"

"Very ancient items that hold a lot of magic. One of them used to be the Sorcerer's Stone, but of course that was later moved, as you know," he said with a smile. "Some of the items have been blessed by Merpeople, and trust me to convince the Merpeople to do that is extremely difficult. Not to mention, the items themselves have to be made of certain materials that can hold magic better, such as topaz or crystal. Not many materials these days can contain that kind of ancient magic which is why we've been keeping these items around and being very careful with them. So far we have nothing that could potentially take their place with those kinds of spells. No doubt Voldemort had access to some ancient items that might have been passed down through his family, from Salazar's time, and those would have accounted for the protections on the Riddle House and Malfoy Manor, I'm sure. Don't worry, Harry, we will look into this thoroughly and I will let you know as soon as I find anything."

Harry nodded and stood up. "Thanks, Kingsley."

Kingsley shook his hand again. "You're welcome, Harry. I'll see you at the celebration."

Harry smiled and nodded. He stepped out of the office and breathed a heavy sigh. How was he going to break the news to Malfoy? The first thing he did when he got home was to owl Malfoy and told him to meet him at the Opaleye. It was the same place that Malfoy had been on Christmas Eve. He figured it was safer to break the news in a public place. Not to mention, Harry was starving. He hadn't eaten lunch and it was past his normal time for dinner since it was already nearing seven.

He nervously walked into the Opaleye. He breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't see Malfoy yet so he sat down at a table, ordered a large butterbeer and tried to think of how he was going to tell Malfoy the bad news. It hadn't been but five minutes until he saw Malfoy approaching his table. He practically swallowed some of his butterbeer down the wrong pipe.

"Potter, what the hell did the Minister say?" he blurted out before he even took his seat.

Malfoy waved his wand carelessly at the menu to order his own drink and food. His drink immediately floated over to him.

"Er, well, he said that he's sending Aurors over to our apartments to see if they can get some evidence of who was tampering with your furniture and my protections."

"And are they going to set up better protections?" Malfoy asked.

Harry swallowed. "It seems that they…can't."

Malfoy's jaw tensed as his fist clenched around his glass of butterbeer. Harry felt his heart rate increase but he tried not to show any unease.

"What do you mean they _can't_?"

"The items required to actually perform the advanced spells were either lost or stolen during the war so…they have no more items to use these spells and apparently these ancient items are necessary to strengthen the spells. Otherwise, they can't do any more than what we've already done to our apartments."

"And what the bloody hell does the Minister think that will solve? The intruder obviously has no problems breaking those kinds of protections! I can't afford – well, I could afford to stay in an inn for the rest of my bloody life, but I damn well am not going to waste that much money. And I can't get a new place until my contract at the other apartment is up, or I pay a bloody expensive fine to get out of it. Seeing as how this person found out where we both live so easily then obviously finding another place would only buy us some time! This is bloody ridiculous!"

Malfoy was turning red as his volume began to increase. He was clenching his glass so hard Harry thought it might shatter.

"I'm going to go down there and demand that he do something about this! They're supposed to protect people when crimes happen! If they can't give us better protections then they bloody well pay for my stay at the inn!"

"I doubt they're going to do that," Harry said. "But I have another suggestion," he blurted out quickly.

Malfoy breathed out heavily and stared at him firmly. "What, Potter?"

"Okay, I…," Harry hesitated for a moment. What he was about to do could be the stupidest thing in his life. Then again, having Malfoy around would be the perfect opportunity to get a personal item of his for the potion. "Look, you may not exactly like it, but…"

"Spit it out, Potter!" Malfoy snapped.

Harry took a moment to semi-calmly take a sip of butterbeer. "Okay," Harry said, leaning forward as he spoke quietly. "I have a secret place."

Malfoy's jaw seemed to unclench either out of curiosity or because his anger was starting to fade. He raised an eyebrow. "A secret place? Like a hideout, Potter? There's no bloody way that I'm hiding out in some stupid little secret hiding spot!"

"It's not like that, Malfoy."

Just as Harry said that their food arrived. Malfoy shoved some dragon scales in his mouth and Harry took a bite of his pasta with grilled dragon meat.

"So what is it like then, Potter, if it's not a secret hiding spot?" Malfoy countered through half a mouthful.

Harry fought the urge to roll his eyes. "It's a house."

The blond's expression gave away his surprise. He slowly sat back in his seat and folded his arms.

"A house?"

"Yes, it's…it's actually my Godfather's house - _was_ his house anyway. It has several bedrooms and it's very spacious, but most of all it has very advanced protections on it _and_ it's invisible."

Malfoy snorted. "Then why do you even have an apartment if you have a house, Potter?"

Harry sat back in his seat and shrugged. "I didn't want to go there after he died."

He couldn't look at Malfoy for a minute but finally he glanced at him. The blond was staring at him with some surprise and his expression was that of curiosity and something else. He surprisingly didn't have a sarcastic look on his face. However, the moment vanished and Malfoy's eyebrows furrowed.

"So, let me get this straight, Potter. You have this wonderful house with all these protections that you've been keeping secret because of…," Malfoy trailed off and then suddenly changed the subject. "And you're saying that we would both move in there _together_?"

"Er, just until they catch the person, but the Minister said he thinks that's the safest place."

Malfoy started shaking his head and he laughed sarcastically. "So not only do I have to see you at work but I have to live with you and pay you and –"

"You wouldn't have to pay me."

Malfoy suddenly stopped and stared at him. He raised both eyebrows. "Really? I wouldn't?"

Harry shook his head. "No, the house is all paid off. So you can stay there for free. I mean, if you don't mind sharing a house with me that is."

Sighing irritably, Malfoy unfolded his arms. "Well, if it's free rent and it's the safest place, I can't really pass that up. It's better than blowing money on this inn. And as long as I get my own room I'm fine with it."

"Yes, of course you get your own room. I would prefer to stay at my apartment and risk getting killed than share a room with you."

Malfoy sneered. "The feeling is mutual, Potter. Fine, I can move my stuff in tomorrow since I already paid the inn for the night anyway."

Harry nodded and began eating his meal. They were silent for several minutes before Malfoy spoke again.

"So how big is this house of yours?"

Harry swallowed. "It's got four floors not including a basement."

Malfoy gave him a slightly impressed look, which Harry thought was meant to show that he approved. That rather irritated him.

"Not bad. So what kind of protections does it have?"

"Every kind known to wizards. It's unplottable, so that muggles can't see it obviously. It's hidden between two buildings and it appears only to those who are allowed in it since it's protected by a Fidelius Charm. I think it's literally the safest place in the entire wizard world."

"Well that makes it more inviting," Malfoy said. "Does the Ministry know about it?"

"Yes, but since a death eater had discovered it during seventh year I actually added extra protections so that if anyone did know of its location it would actually show up as one of the other houses next door to it. Ron and Hermione helped me with those protections. It is now fully untouchable and nobody knows its location except me, Ron, Hermione and a few Ministry members from the Order."

"The Order?"

"Yeah, it was used as the Order's hideout because it was so well protected."

Malfoy again seemed to look impressed and for some reason this caught Harry off guard. Why would he be impressed with the Order seeing as how his parents were Voldemort supporters?

"So how many bedrooms are there? You said I get my own room so there has to be at least two, right?"

"Actually, there's way more than two."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"There are bedrooms on each of the four floors. Actually, maybe there's five floors. There's a ground floor where the living room is, the basement, then there's the grand staircase that leads up to the four floors and each of those floors have bedrooms. The first floor has one bedroom, the second has one, the third bedroom I think has two and then the fourth has two."

"So not only do we not have to share a room, but we don't even have to share a floor," Malfoy said smirking. "I'm liking this idea even more, Potter."

Harry just gave him a look. They finished eating and then Malfoy stood up, after leaving money on the table.

"All right, Potter, where are we meeting tomorrow?"

"At King's Cross Station. It's close to it."

Malfoy nodded. "Fine, we meet there at ten tomorrow morning. Don't be late. Hopefully those damn Aurors at least unhexed my furniture, especially my bed."

Harry shrugged. "Worst case scenario the bedrooms are furnished."

"Right, but my bed was specially made, Potter. So if the Ministry is good for anything, they better have at least fixed my furniture."

With that, the blond turned around swiftly and left the restaurant. Harry stayed a few extra minutes to finish his butterbeer before he went home. As he lay in bed that night, he kept thinking that it was surreal. He and Malfoy were going to live together in the same house. Granted, it was a large house and they probably would be in and out at different times, except when they had assignments together, but that would mean he would literally be seeing Malfoy almost all the time. He had no idea how that was going to go and he hoped he wasn't making a huge mistake.

Instantly, Harry snapped straight up. He had to make sure the place was presentable enough, not that he cared what Malfoy thought, especially since he was getting a room and protections for free. Harry instantly flew to the King's Cross station and made the short walk towards 12 Grimmauld Place. As Harry approached the spot, the house appeared in between 11 and 13 just as it had before, appearing to shove its neighboring houses.

Harry saw the battered front door and immediately started repairing it with some spells to make it more presentable. Then he walked inside. It wasn't in too bad a shape considering that Kreacher hadn't attended to it very often since Harry had ordered him to work at Hogwarts. Even so, Kreacher was still in charge of maintaining the place and anytime Harry needed him he would be able to summon him directly from Hogwarts. Harry walked through the entrance hall towards the basement and down the narrow stone stairs into the enormous kitchen. He headed toward the large fireplace at the end, passing by the huge long wooden table where the Order had sat. He glanced up at the iron pots and pans hanging from the ceiling that were there the very first time he had seen Grimmauld Place. The kitchen was just as huge as he remembered it, filling the entire basement. It was very cozy now though and rather extravagant without all the cobwebs and dusty floors. Kreacher had done a very nice job indeed.

During his seventh year, Kreacher had cleaned it up when it was his, Ron and Hermione's hideout and it was still just as clean and elegant as Kreacher had left it. The only time that Kreacher could come back into the room was if the enchanted fireplace was on. It was the direct secret path from Hogwarts to Grimmauld Place, but only with a secret password and some floo powder (which Kreacher was allowed to carry with him), and Kreacher was sworn to secrecy in regards to the password. Harry stood in front of the fireplace and with a wave of his wand it roared to life. Harry cleared his throat and uttered the password _**Padfoot**_.

"Kreacher," Harry called out.

Only seconds passed before the fire turned blue and purple and suddenly Kreacher appeared in front of him.

"Master Harry Potter," Kreacher said glumly.

He had the feeling that Kreacher hadn't really missed him.

"Hello Kreacher, it's been a while."

The house-elf just stared up at him. "Is Master Potter moving back in?"

"Actually, I am, but temporarily. I'm not sure how long I will need to be here, but I'm bringing a guest along with me. We need to make sure that the bedrooms are cleaned and presentable."

"Yes, Master," Kreacher said obediently.

The house elf still gave Harry a solemn look as if he dreaded following his orders, but thankfully he didn't put up a fight.

"I will take care of the bedrooms on the first floor and you can start with the second."

Kreacher muttered another "yes, master" before he glumly headed toward the second floor. Harry followed him up the winding staircase.

"So how do you like working at Hogwarts, Kreacher?"

Kreacher stopped and turned to stare at him as if he was utterly appauled that Harry was trying to make conversation with him.

"Kreacher likes Hogwarts, Master," he muttered.

It certainly didn't sound like he did, but maybe that was only because he hadn't been allowed to leave Hogwarts since the path to the Grimmauld Place had been closed due to Harry's absence. Perhaps Kreacher was just homesick.

"Would you like to leave Hogwarts and stay here while I'm here?"

Kreacher turned back around and this time looked genuinely surprised as though he didn't know what to make of Harry's kind offer. There was also a look of sadness in his eyes.

"No, Master Potter, Kreacher likes Hogwarts."

"Oh," Harry said, realizing he was being sincere. "But you miss being able to come back here when you want, right?"

Kreacher cast his eyes downward and then glanced back up at him with what looked to be a glare, but then again he always had a gloomy look on his face.

"I can leave the fireplace on, if you like, so that you can come and go from Hogwarts back here as you please. Would you like that?"

Kreacher again looked shocked and then he cast his eyes downward again as he spoke.

"Yes, Master, Kreacher would like that."

Harry smiled. Kreacher then kept walking toward the second floor and Harry entered the bedroom on the first floor. It was the bedroom that Hermione and Ginny had shared when they had all been there with the Order. There were two twin beds and a wardrobe, just like the bedroom on the second floor that he and Ron had shared. It was a bit dusty but otherwise was in good condition. Harry used his wand to clean the sheets and the dust that had gathered. He wasn't sure which room Malfoy would choose but since the blond had a special bed that he would bring with him, it really didn't matter if he changed the sheets.

Harry became nostalgic and walked out of the bedroom and into the drawing room. Kreacher had since cleaned it up and it was exquisite. The large windows overlooked the street in front of the house and there was a large fireplace flanked by two ornate glass-fronted cabinets. Harry's eyes caught sight of the wall covered with a tapestry of the Black Family Tree and his eyes dimmed. He still missed Sirius. This was the room that he, Ron, and Hermione had slept in when they were hiding from the Ministry during seventh year. It brought back some dark memories but overall it was surreal to think about all that had happened.

Harry went up to the next floor and checked out the bedroom there. Kreacher had straightened it up. Then Harry went up to the third floor and walked into the master bedroom, which was beautiful. Kreacher had definitely just cleaned it because there was no dust anywhere. There were gorgeous velvet curtains adorning the large windows, just like in Sirius and Regulus' old rooms up on the fourth floor. Harry hadn't been in this room before, since he had had no need, and since it was such an enormous house he hadn't explored every part of it. This would definitely be his room. The bed was much larger than his own, and it had a beautifully carved wooden headboard. He didn't even mind that the headboard had the shape of a serpent engrained in it. Walking across the hall he glanced in the other bedroom. There wasn't much in it besides a wardrobe, a couch, and a desk. There wasn't even a bed. Going up to the fourth floor, Harry saw Kreacher coming out of Sirius' old room.

"How do they look?"

"All clean Master Potter."

"Good. Thanks, Kreacher."

The house-elf actually seemed to wince at the kind words. Then surprisingly Kreacher spoke:

"Can Kreacher stay here Master Potter?"

"Yes, you can stay here tonight, Kreacher, but don't forget that you still have duties over at Hogwarts. You'll have to go back there tomorrow morning, but anytime you're finished helping out there, you can come back here. I will leave the fireplace on," he reminded the forlorn house-elf.

"Thank you, Master Potter. Kreacher is most grateful."

Harry actually thought he meant it. Kreacher immediately went downstairs and Harry had a feeling that he was headed for the basement and into his den, which was inside a cupboard next to the boiler. That's where Kreacher's dirty bed was and all the old family trinkets he kept piled there. He opened Sirius' room to see that it was very beautiful. It was still adorned the way Sirius had left it before he ran away from home at 16 with Gryffindor colors and banners. The bed was not quite as big as the one in the master bedroom, but it was just as beautifully made. Both Sirius and Regulus' rooms had couches, little fireplaces, velvet curtains on the windows.

Harry had a feeling that Malfoy would choose Regulus' room, not just because it was adjourned in Slytherin colors, the Black family crest painted over the bed, and clippings regarding Voldemort, but also because it was on the top-most floor. The fourth floor was the smallest but it was very homey. It only had the two doors leading to the two bedrooms and each of the two bedrooms had their own bathrooms as well. It was a complete apartment just up on the fourth floor and it was the farthest away from the entrance, which made it feel safer. There was a gorgeous view of the stars from their room because of the small window in the ceiling which caught the light of the moon, or the stars shimmering brightly on a clear night. Not to mention Sirius and Regulus' rooms were much larger than the other bedrooms on the other floors.

Harry headed back downstairs to the basement and checked the fridge. It was completely clean, but empty. Obviously Kreacher made sure to throw out anything old so Harry left the place and went back to his own apartment to get some things, including clothes. He shrunk everything down and managed to fit it in his old school trunk. He then also went out and bought a ton of food, probably more than necessary, to stick in the fridge. He bought a few different flavors of butterbeer, since he and Malfoy both enjoyed drinking that and it probably would go fast. He bought two large casings of the chocolate fizz, vanilla, and original butterbeer. He got some staples, but then also things like roasted chicken and other fancier meals that Kreacher could easily prepare that would be equivalent to the Opaleye restaurant. He really hated feeling like he had to impress Malfoy, but for some reason he just couldn't help it. He didn't want Malfoy to be able to scoff at anything, like he used to do with Ron in regards to his hand-me-down clothes and the house he lived in.

By the time he was all settled in, it was getting very late. Harry had already decided he would sleep there that night since that would be his new place for a while anyway. He walked into the master bedroom and changed for bed. Getting up onto the large, high bed, Harry felt his body sink into the mattress. He sighed contently wondering why he hadn't moved into the Grimmauld Place. When Malfoy had asked him that he had been caught off guard, but it made sense. Why get an apartment when he had such an extravagant house all paid off? He hadn't been lying when he had told Malfoy that it was due to the memory of his Godfather, that was true, and also all the memories of hiding out in fear of his life. Going back there brought memories of the war and the Order and losing Sirius, but also it was just lonely. To live in such a huge place alone just didn't make sense. Having Malfoy there would actually make it feel less lonely, but even the two of them couldn't possibly make use of the entire house. Still, he was glad he had a reason to visit again. It was definitely time to put the past behind him and move forward.

Harry fell asleep in no time and the rays of the morning sun woke him up. Stretching, he turned over and saw Kreacher's face peering into his own. Harry jumped backward, completely taken by surprise, and unfortunately was too close to the edge. Harry let out a gasp as he fell off the bed and landed on the floor with a thud. He groaned loudly and blinked up at Kreacher who was peering over the bed.

"Kreacher is very sorry Master Potter," he grumbled. Then he went over to the headboard and began banging his head.

"Kreacher stop banging your head!"

The house-elf stopped and glanced at him. "Kreacher must punish himself for hurting master," he grumbled, glancing away for a second and then back at Harry but unable to meet his eyes.

"There's no need to do that. Why are you in my room and in my bed?" Harry asked, annoyed.

"Kreacher needs permission to leave for Hogwarts."

Harry sighed heavily. "I gave you permission last night. I told you that you had to be back at Hogwarts in the morning."

"Kreacher wanted to make sure."

"Okay, fine, you can leave."

Kreacher muttered something and then left the room. Harry groaned, wondering if it was such a great idea being back there. If Kreacher got out of hand, he could just order the house-elf not to come back. He would hate to have to do that after telling him he could come back to the house anytime, but if he became desperate it would just have to be done.

Harry jumped into the large shower wanting to relax a bit before dealing with Malfoy. It was then that the idea hit him. He couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it before. It was slightly underhanded, but he had to use the resources available to him. If Hermione ever found out, she would disapprove greatly and probably tell him it was something Malfoy would do. Still, he needed something person of Malfoy's for that potion.

He headed over to the King's Cross Station as planned. Malfoy was already there when he arrived. He had a single trunk with probably all of his stuff shrunk down in order to fit.

Instead of a greeting, Malfoy just said: "All right, Potter, let's go."

Rolling his eyes, Harry gestured for him to follow. He took him toward the location and as he approached the top step the 12 Grimmauld Place building magically appeared in between the others. Malfoy glanced at the serpent door handle and raised an eyebrow.

"It was owned by the Black family, Malfoy, so, yes, there's a Slytherin theme."

Malfoy smirked. "Well, I guess I'll feel right at home then."

Harry glared at him and opened the door. The second they stepped into the entryway Harry could tell that Malfoy was deeply impressed. The blond stared up at the tall eloquent ceiling.

"I think first you can take your stuff into the bedroom then, er, I could give you a tour."

Malfoy shrugged. "Sure."

"I'm in the master bedroom on the third floor," Harry said, as they climbed the spiral stairway. "There are bedrooms on the first, second, and third floors, but I think you'd prefer the one on the fourth."

"Really? And why's that?" Malfoy asked curiously.

"Because they're larger than the other bedrooms, about the size of the master bedroom that I'm in."

Malfoy made a subtle face of agreement.

"And because Regulus' old room is decked out in Slytherin colors."

Malfoy snorted. "Wonderful. It will be just like my old bedroom."

Harry bit his lip to keep from asking why he wasn't living at Malfoy Manor. They walked up to the fourth floor and Harry opened Regulus' door for him. Malfoy stepped inside and examined the room.

"Not bad."

Harry rolled his eyes. Obviously that meant he really liked it. He didn't see how he couldn't with the velvet curtains, large bathroom, large bed, a desk, a nicely carved wooden bureau with more serpent handles, and a large double window overlooking the trees surrounding back of the house. Malfoy instantly went over to the bed and sat on it.

"Are the sheets clean, Potter?"

"Of course. Did you, er, not get your bed back?"

Malfoy scowled. "No! I paid a visit to my place and couldn't get in. The Aurors obviously sealed it off to investigate it so I couldn't even get my stuff. Thankfully I managed to grab some of my things before I had to leave and go to the inn, but now I'm going to have to go out and buy some more clothes." Then he shrugged. "Well, I guess if I'm saving money on rent I have extra money for that. I contacted the owner of my apartment and apparently the Ministry had already informed them of what was going on so they're going to waive my rent fee for however long it takes."

"Er, that's good," Harry said awkwardly. He would have to check with the Minister that they did the same thing for him, but he didn't see why they wouldn't. He hadn't even thought to contact his apartment owner. "Uh, did you want a tour?"

Malfoy shrugged and then followed Harry out of the room.

"Obviously this is the fourth floor, it only has two bedrooms."

"That's another bedroom?" Malfoy asked, pointing to Sirius' door.

"Yes. That used to be my Godfather's room."

Malfoy turned and glanced at him. "Your Godfather was Sirius Black, right?"

"Yes," Harry said. Of course Malfoy would know that since his aunt was Bellatrix Lestrange. "Anyway, I actually haven't explored the entire third floor so I don't know if all of those are bedrooms."

Harry walked down the hall and opened one of the doors.

"Oh, it's a sitting room."

Malfoy peered around him. There were four plush chairs, a couch, a large fireplace, a couple of small tables by the chairs and couch and a bookshelf with many old books filling it entirely. Malfoy turned to him and they exchanged intrigued expressions. Malfoy raised an eyebrow. That was definitely a habit of his that he did often.

"Isn't this your house, Potter?"

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, but I never really got a chance to explore it much. And whenever I've been here I didn't need all of these rooms. It's too large for one person."

Malfoy snorted. "That's why you don't like here? Because it's too large? Well, if you're ungrateful I'd be happy to take it off your hands for you."

Harry glared. "Hilarious. Actually, you know, I was thinking about it, and you're right."

Malfoy raised both eyebrows and smirked. "I'm _right_, Potter?"

Harry shut the door and sighed heavily. "Yes, Malfoy, about it not making sense to pay for an apartment when I have this huge house. I guess once my contract is up with my apartment I'll just move in here. Besides, it's conveniently right near the train station and it's much safer than any apartment."

Malfoy tried to hide his envy, but Harry could read his tensed expression.

"Anyway, what's in here," Harry said, opening the door across from it. Both of the rooms on either side of the sitting room were small bedrooms. They had one small bed in them each, a wardrobe, tables, but no private bathrooms. There was a large bathroom that was the last door down the hall opposite from that back toward the stairway. Harry wondered if that was the bathroom that used to have the murderous ghoul living in it. Hopefully no ghouls would come must have been guest bedrooms because they weren't as nice. Thankfully, though, Kreacher had managed to dust those rooms too so they still looked homey.

They walked down to the second floor and Harry knew that there was a bedroom here, but hadn't opened the other two rooms on that floor. Thankfully, Malfoy didn't seem to mind that he was exploring while he was giving him a tour. One of the rooms looked like a study. It had a large wooden desk that was, of course, beautifully crafted like the beds. It had a gorgeous wooden chair with velvet cushions. They both entered the room, admiring it. There were two large windows in the study, one of them conveniently right in back of the desk and chair to provide good light during the day. The windows had the same velvet curtains that adorned every room. On one of the walls was the Black Family Crest again, and on the other side was a painting of the entire Black family. Harry approached it and examined it. It was of Sirius' immediate family.

There was his mother, whom he recognized from the screaming portrait: Walburga Black, Orion Black, his father, the infamous Regulus and Sirius. Sirius looked to be no older than 14 in the family portrait. Malfoy noticed him staring at the portrait but didn't say anything.

They moved onto the first floor, which didn't have anything different besides a bedroom, bathroom, storage closet, which was filled with olden day models of brooms, which had been the best in their time, and another room that just had a wardrobe, a rug made out of some kind of animal, and nothing else. Harry thought it was very odd, but he guessed that not all rooms had to be furnished. Harry took Malfoy back downstairs to the ground floor, in the opposite direction of the entryway. On one side of the entryway was the living room, and on the other side was the dining room, which he remembered being in with Sirius.

The living room was even larger than the kitchen in the basement and could have easily been two rooms put together. It had velvet couches and a couple plush chairs that actually floated on command (unfortunately the "password" was pure blood). Harry would have to change that, but Malfoy seemed to find that amusing for he wouldn't stop smirking. There were small tables next to each of them, and two fireplaces. One of the main fireplaces was on the left wall and the velvet couches were on that side of the room facing each other right in front of the fireplace. There was a wooden table in between them. On the other side of the living room were the several floating chairs with a small table next to each of the chairs and there was a fireplace on the opposite wall from the other one way across to the other side of the room, which happened to be in front of the chairs. Malfoy was definitely impressed by that room for he didn't even hide his expression.

The dining room was just as nice with a long table and dark wooden chairs with plush cushions. It was smaller than the enormous table in the kitchen. In the corner of the room there was a statue of the old Hogwarts headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black, Sirius' descendant.

Then Harry took Malfoy into the basement to show him the kitchen, the large fireplace, which was still on, and the fridge.

"I bought some food so we should be good for a while," Harry said.

Malfoy opened the fridge and examined the contents. He didn't seem to be displeased by anything, not that Harry would care. It was his place and Malfoy was there for free so if he didn't like something, he could buy his own food.

"Er, so that's basically it."

Malfoy folded his arms casually. "Not bad, Potter. I'd say this place is actually really nice. More up to my tastes. I'm surprised something this nice is in your possession."

"Don't get used it," Harry said firmly.

Malfoy's smirk began to fade but then he just snorted. "Thanks for the tour, Potter," he drawled sarcastically. "I guess I'll go make myself at home then."

He gave Harry a sly grin and then headed back upstairs. Once he was certain Malfoy was gone and out of earshot he stood in front of the fireplace and called for Kreacher again. The house-elf appeared almost instantly.

"Kreacher, I need you to do me a favor when you're done there at Hogwarts," he said quietly. He bent down towards the house-elf. "I have a guest here and I need you to get a piece of his hair. Don't be too obvious about it though. Try to get it without him knowing and then bring it directly to me."

Kreacher studied him and then actually seemed to grin widely. "Yes, Master Potter."

"Er, that's all."

Kreacher then went back through the fireplace to Hogwarts, after muttering the password. Obviously, Kreacher thought was Harry didn't fall far from the Black family tree. Kreacher's excitement over doing something secretive though would warrant for better cooperation from the house-elf.

Harry decided to just relax and take it easy. Since he hadn't had breakfast, he flew to Hogsmeade to eat brunch at a restaurant before flying around and visiting some broom stores. Truth be told he just didn't know what to do with himself when he didn't have assignments, or when he wasn't fighting for his life. So he killed time by visiting Quidditch stores as well, he went out and bought a couple new jeans and shirts also. By the time he got home later on, it was approaching early evening. When he got back, he went to the kitchen to get a butterbeer and then went to the living room. To his shock, Malfoy was sitting in the living room as well, lying on the couch and eating. He also had opened a butterbeer, which was sitting idly on the table. Malfoy glanced up at him as he entered.

"You weren't joking when you said you'd make yourself at home," Harry said, settling down on the couch opposite from Malfoy.

The blond had the fireplace on, which was producing relaxing heat.

"What can I say, Potter," Malfoy said grinning, "I adapt well."

Harry actually laughed aloud and the blond smirked at him.

"Okay right."

Harry also put his feet up and lay down as he sipped his butterbeer. Suddenly, he sat up.

"Uh oh."

"What, Potter?" Malfoy asked through a mouthful of food.

Harry ignored his poor manners. "If this house is so protected, then Dimitri won't be able to send us assignments here."

"He's going to leave them there at the building."

Harry turned to stare at the blond. "What? How do you know?"

"Because I saw him today. I went to talk to him and told him about our…situation," Malfoy said. "I told him we were safe, but no longer at our apartments so he suggested the safest thing to do would be to pick up our assignments from his office."

Clenching his jaw, Harry set his butterbeer down. "Malfoy, did you not think to tell me this?"

"First off, Potter, you weren't here when I got back from talking with him, and second off, I don't have to push everything aside just to inform _you_ of every little change."

Harry glared at him but then lay back down. "Whatever, next time just tell me."

Malfoy snorted and then just ignored him.

Harry breathed out deeply and then took a gulp of his butterbeer. It finally hit him that this is what he would be dealing with on a regular basis, not just on assignments. He and Malfoy were literally bound at the hip. And he had no idea what he was in for.

TO BE CONTINUED…


	6. Blossoming Friendship

_**Luminescence **_

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the delay with this chapter! I've been working and still studying for national exams. I passed one! So two more to go! The romance is starting in the next chapter!

Oh, and please let me know what you think! I've noticed that a lot of people seem to be following this story, but not reviewing. Fanfiction is just for fun and considering the limited time I have nowadays, it makes it worthwhile to know what people actually think of my hard work. It also keeps me motivated to keep writing. **So please take time to review, thanks!**

**XXXXXXX**

**Chapter 5: Blossoming Friendship**

Harry woke up suddenly to someone screaming his name.

"POTTER!"

He bolted upright in bed. His brain was still fuzzy but he recognized Malfoy's voice screaming out for him. His instincts took over and he snatched his wand from the bureau, not even stopping to think. Harry grabbed a handful of floo powder from atop the fireplace mantel and threw it into the fireplace. Even without flames burning, this special version of floo powder, which was more expensive and colored pink, could be used with or without fire. All of the fireplaces in Grimmauld Place were connected so Harry could go to any room on any floor from any of the fireplaces. He immediately shouted for the top floor.

He came blazing out of the fireplace, wand in hand. Malfoy was sprawled in the bed with his sheets twisted up and his nude chest half showing. His hair was disheveled and when he heard Harry's entrance his head wheeled around abruptly. There was an alarmed expression on Malfoy's face, but he didn't see any fear. All of a sudden Harry was confused as his sleepy brain tried to catch up. Malfoy's expression turned to one of annoyance.

"What the hell is going on?"

"What?" Harry blinked out of his sleepy haze.

Suddenly, without warning, the curtain around Malfoy's bed began to move. Harry shouted a spell and the curtain flew up revealing Kreacher with his hands clenched into fists.

"Kreacher!" Harry exclaimed.

It then occurred to him what Kreacher must have been doing. He was probably trying to get a piece of hair from Malfoy and startled him.

"The House Elf attacked me in my sleep! He pulled my hair and stepped on my face," Malfoy said, scowling.

Harry realized that he couldn't show any sign that he knew what was going on so he gave Kreacher a look. He then cleared his throat.

"Kreacher, Malfoy is a guest here. He's not a stranger," he said awkwardly.

He stared at Kreacher hoping the House Elf wouldn't say anything. Kreacher just glared at Harry.

"Kreacher is sorry, Master," he muttered, not sounding sorry at all.

Harry lowered his wand, realizing that he had it raised. "It's fine. Er, apologize to Malfoy."

Kreacher looked like he had just eaten something sour but he turned to Malfoy and bowed his head. "Kreacher is sorry."

Malfoy just folded his arms. "Fine. Now both of you get out of my room!"

Harry glared at him as Kreacher ran out of the room. He didn't even glance once at Harry. Then Harry glanced up at Malfoy.

"Sorry about that. Kreacher still takes care of this place."

"Whatever. He's a bloody weird House Elf, Potter," Malfoy said. "Now get out of here. I'd prefer not to see you like that."

Glancing down, Harry flushed with embarrassment. He was clad only in his black boxers. Awkwardly, Harry walked out of Malfoy's room and sighed heavily. When he got back to his room he saw Kreacher sitting on his bed. Harry closed his door.

"Did you get it?" he whispered.

Kreacher grinned and held out his hand. Harry opened his hand and a few pieces of blond hairs fell into it.

"Good job, Kreacher," Harry said.

Kreacher just sneered at him. "If Master doesn't need anything else."

He didn't even wait for Harry's response as he left the room. Sighing, Harry changed into his clothes. He was still uneasy about the Inferi incident and the break-ins into his and Malfoy's apartments. Still, there was something about being at Grimmauld Place again, and something about having someone to share it with. It didn't feel lonely, which was the reason Harry had avoided living there previously. He took the secret passage from the room across the hall to the ground floor. Then he went down the stairs toward the kitchen for some breakfast. Malfoy was already there eating.

"Er, hi," Harry said awkwardly.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow obviously still annoyed about what happened earlier. "Look, I know we have to live together until this whole thing is sorted out, but we don't have to talk all the time."

Harry glared at him. So much for trying to be civil. "Fine."

"Also, I'm planning on getting my own food from now on. I'll put mine on the third and fourth shelves of the fridge and you can have the first two shelves."

Harry nodded. He wondered if Malfoy was doing that because he didn't like Harry's choice of food or because he felt guilty that Harry was helping him out and he didn't want to leave everything to him. The latter was probably wishful thinking.

He made himself some eggs, toast and bacon and then sat down to eat. Thankfully the kitchen table was enormous so they weren't eating in close proximity. Harry felt a little awkward at the silence. He was used to always being able to talk to his friends when they ate. He had to remind himself that Malfoy was _not_ a friend. He was a co-worker, a temporary house mate, and, most importantly, an arrogant, annoying prick.

"I'm going in today to see if we have any assignments," Malfoy said as he rose from the table. "If we do I'll be back, if not I'm going to go and buy some new clothes and stuff I need."

"Okay."

Malfoy stared at him for a second as if he was going to say something else, but then he just turned around and left. Harry watched him wondering what that hesitation was about. He waited for some time and when Malfoy didn't return in an hour he figured they didn't have an assignment yet. He wondered if Dimitri was holding off for a while because of the Inferi incident. Harry was becoming restless. He remembered that the Ministry celebration was coming up. He didn't want to go by himself but none of his friends were available. He wouldn't even entertain the idea of inviting Malfoy for a second. He was _not_ a friend.

So Harry decided to get the rest of the ingredients he needed for the potion Neville had mentioned. He still wasn't sure what _The Adstringo Potion _was or what exactly it would do. Neville seemed to think it would help him keep closer tabs on Malfoy. And it did describe in the book that it was to know your enemies better than your friends. For the next hour, Harry brewed the potion, only putting one of Malfoy's strands of hair in it. He left it lying out in the small cauldron to cool since it needed twenty minutes of cooling time.

Harry received a letter from Ron later that afternoon about his training with dragons. It sounded like it was treacherous but Ron seemed to be enjoying it. Harry set the rest of Malfoy's pieces of hair down on the table next to the other ingredients and was reading Snape's potion book when he was startled out of his daze by Malfoy's voice.

"Potter! Are you here?"

Harry panicked shoving the recently made vial in his pocket. He quickly threw the closest thing he could reach, which was a robe, over the cauldron and ingredients. Malfoy knocked on his door a minute later.

"Yeah?"

Malfoy opened the door and stuck his head inside. Harry tried to stand in front of the robe so Malfoy couldn't see it clearly and hoped that he appeared calm.

"We have a last minute assignment."

Harry blinked in surprise. He didn't expect to get an assignment nearing the evening time. He thought for sure since Malfoy had been gone for several hours that there wasn't anything. Harry followed him out the door and down the stairs.

"What's the assignment?" Harry asked as they rushed outside.

"Blue Snargaluff Tree," Malfoy responded.

"I've heard of a Snargaluff Tree, but not a blue one."

Harry recalled that the Snargaluff Tree was a vicious plant covered in spikes. It remained a stump until disturbed and then it uncoiled and grew into a tree and could attack with its spiky branches.

Malfoy handed him Dimitri's assignment as they both sat in the living room.

_**Assignment 3: Blue Snargaluff Tree**_

_**Unlike the regular Snargaluff Tree, this one is blue in color and much smaller. However, it is the small pods inside of it that we are interested in. The Snargaluff Tree has small pods that emit wriggling tubers, which have certain magical properties, usually used as small bombs or to enhance potions. The Blue Snargaluff has been seen very rarely and the last witch to have seen it was so frightened by it when its spiked branches attacked her, after she accidently disturbed it, that she set it on fire and destroyed it. We need samples of these pods in order to study exactly what properties they possess and how they might be helpful in potions or spells. This would be a tremendous finding! **_

_**The witch who came across this was known as Helenya Watercroft and she lived in Bordeaux, France. From what the old records show this was back in 1949. People have hunted these in the past, dark wizards, and cultivated them for potions like The Draught of Life. These days there would still be a large price for it and therefore anyone who has seen one may not come forth with information without…persuasion. I'm sure you two can be creative without breaking any laws. If you do break any laws, it would be unfortunate because then I'd have to fire you. So please be cautious!**_

_**There are several areas you will need to check, hopefully with success. In the Egadi Islands in Italy a wizard described a strange blue thing which appeared one day in his massive yard. I have written down several other areas where it's possible it was sighted. Also there are some areas in Islay, Scotland and Ireland (one of which is Connemara) that you can check out. I marked the areas on the map I've included. It hasn't been seen since so I wish you all the best of luck! **_

_**~Dimitri**_

Harry sighed heavily. It sounded like a potential wild goose chase and who knew how long this assignment would last. It sounded like there were quite a few areas to check out that were a distance away from one another. Thankfully wizard trains were much faster than muggle trains but it would still mean he and Malfoy would be stuck traveling together for a while and probably would be getting home late. At least there wasn't a time limit on the assignments.

"I assume we're starting tonight," he said as Malfoy turned to gaze at him.

Malfoy sighed. "Yeah. I checked the train schedule and there's one leaving at 1 p.m."

Harry leaned back against the chair. "It sounds like this could take forever. I mean, does Dimitri really expect us to find this rare Blue Snargarluff Tree when it hasn't been seen since the 1900's? I'm sure he's had people before us search for it."

Propping up one of his legs on the couch, Malfoy shrugged. "Maybe he thinks we're more efficient at capturing rare creatures. Hopefully it means more pay than usual. Besides, if there's no other pressing matter and he doesn't have any other assignments for us, we can just take our time."

Harry glanced at him, wanting to comment snidely on how everything was about money to him, but he didn't. Upsetting the blond now would make the assignment seem like an eternity of misery. Instead, Harry just made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat.

After a few minutes of silence, with both of them staring out at the fireplace, Harry broke the silence. "I've never been to Italy before."

Malfoy snorted. "It's not that exciting. My parents took me to this supposed top-rate wizard resort there. I mean, it wasn't bad but it didn't have anything special."

"What do you mean special?"

Cocking his head, the blond smirked. "Have you ever been to a wizard resort, Potter?"

Clenching his jaw, Harry sensed that Malfoy was going to tease him about something and be obnoxious. "No," he said, after hesitating.

"Since you _obviously_ didn't grow up in the wizard world, I'll explain this to you so you can understand."

Harry felt his hand clench into a fist. He hated it when Malfoy spoke to him like he was some imbecile.

"A wizard resort is, of course, hidden by muggles and usually they have at least 10 floors. The really fancy ones, like the one I went to, had 25 floors."  
>Harry's anger died as his curiosity grew. "What do you do there?"<p>

"Anything, Potter," Malfoy snorted. "Many of the floors have various things, like one floor is all about Quidditch. You can choose any team you want and any position and be pitted against others playing, just for fun of course, but you can win prizes. Nothing stupid like those collectable wizard cards, but things like gold or broom enhancements, things that are normally pricey."

Harry just nodded. It sounded fun. Now that he thought about it, he realized he had never been on a vacation before, not even a muggle one. He really wanted to go to a wizard resort now to see what kinds of amazing things they offered on each floor.

"But most resorts have those things, like underwater explorations, Quidditch, dragon flying," Malfoy continued, gesturing with his hand as if he was bored. "They didn't have anything special."

"Like what? I mean there are 25 floors and you didn't find one thing that was exciting?" Harry blurted out.

Malfoy glared. "Look, you don't understand, Potter, because you've never been to one. And anything there would awe you since you're practically a muggle."

"I am not!" Harry exclaimed. "Just because I'm half-muggle and wasn't fortunate to be able to live in the wizard world because some insane dark lord wanted me dead doesn't mean that I'm like a muggle."

A smirk formed on Malfoy's face. "So, the famous Harry Potter is against muggles?"

"That's not what I mean!" Harry snapped.

There was a tense silence between them. Harry was starting to think this assignment was not going to go very well.

"Maybe I'm not used to the wizard world still and, yes, everything about magic still excites me, but what do you expect the resort to have exactly? What would be so amazing to you?"

The blond pushed his bangs out of his face and gave him a cool look. "I don't need to explain myself to you, Potter."

"You're too picky. It's because you're so spoiled."

"Spoiled?" Malfoy snapped.

He definitely hit a nerve.

"Well, er, you grew up with lots of money and got anything you wanted."

Malfoy seemed to back down only slightly but his jaw was clenched and he looked like he wanted to jump out of his seat and pounce on him. "I'll have you know, Potter, that several other people agreed with me that this resort wasn't anything special, but you wouldn't understand."

"Fine. Whatever."

Harry was done arguing over stupid things. He still wanted to visit one. There was a look on Malfoy's face now.

"What?"

Malfoy sneered. "Well, we are going to be in the vicinity of one, Potter. You sure you're not tempted to go see one and oogle it like some towerist?"

Suddenly, Harry burst into laughter. "Towerist? It's tourist, Malfoy!"

The blond glared at him. "So what?"

Harry continued to laugh harder. "I can't believe…you didn't even know something like that," he said through fits of laughter.

"I don't know muggle talk!"

"Please, that's not muggle talk, that's human talk," Harry said after his laughter died down. "Even wizards are tourists in other countries they've never been or lived in."

"We don't call them tourists," he said, raising his chin up. "We call them Aurorites. An auror is someone being trained in magic, so an Aurorite is someone – a magical someone – who is unfamiliar with something, like a foreign country."

"Are you serious?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Does it look like I'm joking, Potter?" Malfoy countered.

They both stared at each other and Harry couldn't hold back his laughter again.

"That's ridiculous."

"So are those stupid contraptions that muggles ride with the big wheels that make them look as if they'll fall any second."

"Bicycles?" Harry laughed. "They're not weird."

"Yes, they are!" Malfoy snapped. "They look ridiculous riding them."

"Yeah, like we would look ridiculous riding a broom if a muggle ever saw us," Harry said with a grin.

"Whatever, Potter. I'm done talking to you. You're clearly more muggle than wizard."

Harry just rolled his eyes. It was going to be a long assignment indeed.

**XXXXXXX**

_*SCOTLAND*_

The first stop was Islay, Scotland. On the train, they both bought snacks and drinks. By the time they got to Scotland it was approaching 4. They tracked down their first lead, which was near one of the many caves in the area.

"What the hell is that smell?" Draco asked crinkling his nose.

Harry shrugged. "Probably mold or something."

"Perfect. This has got to be the worst assignment."

"You mean except for when we almost got killed by Inferi," Harry retorted.

Malfoy gave him a look and continued. "I mean, seriously, what was Dimitri thinking, checking every bloody cave around just because some nutcase claimed they spotted one 50 years ago. Unbelievable!"

"Are you going to complain the entire time? I'd like to know that so when my sanity breaks I'll know why."

Malfoy snorted. "If your sanity breaks, you're not going to know a damn thing."

Harry sighed heavily. "Okay, whatever. Just shut-up."

Shining his wand above him, Harry examined the ceiling. His eyes narrowed when he thought he saw something stuck up on the ceiling.

"Seriously, what is that smell?"

"It's you, now can we please keep going?"

Malfoy wheeled around. "Potter, if you say one more thing to annoy me I'm going to cut off your –"

His last word was drowned out by a yelp as something from the ceiling fell directly on his shoulder. Harry recognized it as dragon poop. He burst into laughter so hard he had to put a hand on the wall to steady himself.

"Damnit! Go to hell, Potter!"

"Well, I was going to tell you that I saw something on the ceiling but you were too busy whining. Serves you right."

Malfoy waved a spell over his body that sent the poop off him and pelting towards Harry. He wasn't fast enough to perform a shield charm so he threw himself to the ground to avoid it. Thankfully it hit the cave wall.

"There's nothing in this cave!" Malfoy spat, probably angrier that Harry didn't get splattered than not finding any sign of the Snargaluff.

Harry followed him out, trying not to laugh again. Malfoy glanced over his shoulder once to give him a glare.

"I don't know if we should be concerned that dragons are in the area," he managed to get out rather calmly.

He would never be able to say the word dragon without thinking of this moment.

"Yeah, I hope it eats you."

"Hey, that was my line!" Harry exclaimed, referring back to when Draco almost got eaten by a dragon on their first mission together.

"Every time I'm around you shit happens."

Malfoy's back straightened when he realized what he said but it was too late. Harry laughed so hard he literally doubled over, clutching at his stomach. His knees buckled and he fell to the ground laughing hysterically. He was laughing so hard he felt tears build up in his eyes.

"Hilarious, Potter. I'm leaving you here and you can deal with the dragon on your own."

Malfoy stomped away leaving Harry on the grass. Every time Harry tried to get up he burst into more laughter and fell down. When he finally calmed down enough to get up, Malfoy was much further ahead of him but thankfully still in sight. Harry used a speed charm to catch up. The burst of wind that formed when Harry arrived blew Malfoy's hair in his face. Harry snorted but quickly tried to hide his laughter.

Malfoy waved his wand over his hair to straighten it out. "Are you done acting like an imbecile?"

"For now."

Malfoy rolled his eyes and then huffed. They walked to the next cave and thankfully Harry didn't see any signs of dung on the ceiling. He snickered a little bit but when Malfoy stopped short and glared at him, he coughed and regained composure.

"Nothing again!"

Harry sighed. "Well, we only have ten more to go."

Malfoy glared at him and pushed past him. By the time they had finished looking at all the caves, Harry was exhausted. They had found no clues. Since that was the only clue in Scotland, they would go to Ireland the next day. They decided to catch the train and go back home instead of staying there because Malfoy found he hated Scotland now. Harry figured he just hated being splattered with dragon poop. It wasn't Scotland. Now Malfoy had another reason to hate dragons: one tried to kill him, and the other left its poop which conveniently landed on him.

They didn't arrive home until around 1 a.m. Harry was tired but surprisingly didn't want to go right to sleep. He wanted to relax a bit even though their next train ride was at 9 a.m. tomorrow. Harry went down into the kitchen area where Malfoy had disappeared. The blond had pulled something out of the fridge. It was a black bottle with a dark red rose on it. The rose was charmed to bloom into a full rose and then it would sink back into a bud and shimmer.

"What is that?" Harry asked intrigued.

Malfoy glanced down at the bottle then at Harry with raised eyebrows. "You've never had Midnight Rose?"

"No."

Malfoy smirked. He reached in and grabbed another bottle and then walked past Harry. The look the blond gave him was unnerving. Harry followed him out and they went into the living room. Draco turned on the fireplace.

"Isn't it a bit warm out now?"

Malfoy gazed over and him. "Not if you do your cool flames."

Harry smirked. "Why, you can't do that charm?"

Malfoy clenched his jaw. Before he could say anything Harry walked up beside him and said the charm in his head. The flames turned dark blue and gave off a nice cool breeze.

"Clever, Potter. Saying it in your head," Malfoy drawled. He held onto the drink but didn't offer it to him.

"If you don't want me to have it, I can go get a regular butterbeer."

Malfoy glared at him He then handed Harry his drink. Malfoy stood there watching him.

"Go on, Potter."

Harry stared at him uncertainly. He popped open the top and gaze at Malfoy, whose eyes hadn't left him. It was like he was waiting for Harry to sip poison. Harry hesitated for a second but then took a sip. The flavor was a very alluring spice. His stomach felt all warm and fuzzy, but it was definitely more prominent than butterbeer.

"It's goo—" Before Harry could finish his sentence, his throat suddenly burned making his eyes water. He began coughing uncontrollably.

Malfoy burst into hysterical laughter, much like Harry had done to him earlier. "Oh, Potter, that was priceless! Your face turned all red!"

Harry attempted to say something but then coughed again.

Malfoy reached out to pat his shoulder roughly. "That Firewhiskey sure does creep up on you."

"Very…funny," Harry managed to get out.

"Hey," Malfoy said, leaning toward Harry's face, "payback's a bitch."

Harry rolled his eyes and as he turned his head he caught sight of Malfoy's forearm. He had his long sleeved shirt rolled up to his elbows, probably because it was warm outside and they had been running around all day. Malfoy's hand was still on his shoulder and Harry could clearly see the Dark Mark. Malfoy's eyes moved toward Harry's line of sight. They locked eyes and Malfoy pulled his arm away quickly. The look on his face made the mood change drastically. Harry was actually enjoying the blond more, even though he was still teasing him, and he certainly didn't want Malfoy in a bad mood. Malfoy had turned and was walking away and Harry cleared his throat.

"What?" Malfoy spat as he lie down on the couch.

"I could get rid of that for you," Harry offered without thinking. Draco had been in the process of bringing his drink up to his lips and he stopped suddenly, giving Harry a dumbfounded look. "If you want."

Malfoy stared at him for a minute. Harry was certain the blond would go off on him for even suggesting it. The blond's response surprised him.

"Really? And how exactly would you do that, Potter?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?" The blond made it sound like Harry was proposing a preposterous idea.

"It's a binding contract. It can't be lifted," Malfoy said taking a rather large swig. "That's what my father told me."

"Well, your father wasn't counting on Voldemort dying," Harry said.

Malfoy stared up at him with an uncertain gaze. Without thinking, Harry walked over to where Malfoy was lying down and sat down on the couch by his feet.

"With Voldemort dead it will be much easier to remove it. It still would've been possible with him alive, but I would've had to know exactly what incantation he used. In theory, with him dead I can do my own incantation."

"In _theory_? Potter, you really think I'm going to let you experiment on me with a theory?" Malfoy drawled.

"Thanks for having faith in me," Harry said dryly.

"How many Dark Marks have you removed?"

Harry opened his mouth then closed it.

"That's what I thought."

"I was just trying to help," Harry said.

"I don't need your help, Potter!" Malfoy snapped.

He went back to drinking and Harry glared at him. He decided to go drink up in his room. He barely remembered getting into his PJs and taking a few swigs before lying down and falling asleep almost immediately.

**XXXXXX**

_*IRELAND*_

When he woke up he found his drink had tipped over on the floor. He groaned and summoned his wand to clean it up. Malfoy was incredibly frustrating sometimes. There were times that Harry was surprised that they were talking civilly and then Malfoy would do something stupid like last night and get defensive for no reason.

Harry saw his pants he had worn the other day lying on the floor. When he picked them up he felt something in the pocket. It was the potion. He had completely forgotten about putting the vial in his pocket. He took a deep breath. He wasn't sure if it was worth it or not. He finally decided that it wouldn't hurt to carry it around again. He took a nice long shower and then got dressed.

"Come on, Potter, let's go!"

Malfoy sounded irritated. Harry took in a deep breath and went downstairs.

"Come on, the train leaves in an hour and I want good seats!"

Harry gripped the potion in his pocket as he followed the annoying blond out the door. They got excellent seats considering they were 40 minutes early. Malfoy bought some snacks from the lady with the cart who glanced at Harry and gave him a smile. Harry smiled back politely.

"Sure you don't want anything dear?" she asked.

"Er, I guess a bag of Wand Pops."

"Here you are. And we have some new drinks. We carry the famous Fizzacharm drinks. We have vanilla, chocolate, hazelnut, raspberry, strawberry, butterscotch, even blueberry now!"

"Oh, er, whatever you would recommend."

The lady chuckled in flattery and Malfoy rolled his eyes up to the ceiling.

"I would recommend hazelnut. It's my favorite."

She handed it to him and stared at him for a second with a smile.  
>"Er, thanks."<p>

"You're welcome deary," she said. Then she walked out.

Malfoy was staring at him with the most annoyed look he had ever seen.

"What? She was just being nice."

"No, she was being nice to the famous Harry Potter."

Harry gave him a look. "You don't know that. She could be like that with everyone."

"She wasn't like that with me!"

"Oh," Harry said with a grin. "You're jealous."

Malfoy glared. "I'm not jealous because it's _you_. I just think she shouldn't give _certain_ people special attention."

"You used to get special attention all the time, Malfoy, so don't give me that crap. Maybe this is karma."

"Karma exists only in the minds of those less fortunate."

Harry gave him an open-mouthed look of 'are you kidding me'. Then he took a sip of his drink. It was fizzy, like pop, only it was a hot beverage with a sweet hazelnut flavor.

"Wow, this is good."

"Whatever, Potter. Keep your comments to yourself."

Harry glanced up at him. "Somebody obviously woke up on the wrong side of the bed."

"I woke up in the wrong bed period."

Harry clenched his mug. It was one thing for Malfoy to be in a bad mood, but to sit there and act like he was ungrateful was crossing the line. Harry didn't have to share his enormous, special hideout home with him. Malfoy had a lot of nerve saying that! Licking his lips, Harry reached down into his pocket where the potion was. When Malfoy turned to glance out the window Harry waved his wand wordlessly to make move his chocolate frog bag, which was sitting idly next to the blond.

"Er, Malfoy, your frogs are escaping."

The blond swung his head back around and cursed as his chocolate frogs started hopping away. Malfoy pulled out his wand and while he was busy trying to catch them, Harry quickly took out the potion bottle, uncorked it, and then poured it into the mug. Malfoy turned just as Harry had finished pouring and Harry didn't have time to stick the vial back in his pocket so he curled his fingers around it to hide it.

"Damn frogs," Malfoy muttered. He glanced over at Harry who had one hand on the mug and one hand curled into a fist.

Harry gazed down at his drink nervously. This was it. He just hoped nothing horrible happened like being glued together. Shaking his head, he realized a potion wouldn't be able to do that, only a charm. He raised the mug to his lips and took a sip. Thankfully the potion didn't interfere with the taste.

It took a few hours to get to Ireland and it had taken Harry all that time to finish his drink. Although it tasted fine, he kept waiting for something to happen every time he took a sip. By the end of his drink, he sat there as his leg shook with anticipation. Nothing happened. Just then he heard the call for their stop.

_"All passengers please exit for Connemara, Ireland."_

"Finally!" Malfoy exclaimed as he stood up. "Come on, Potter, move it!"

Harry stood up, leaving his mug on a nearby table.

"What's up with your hand?" Malfoy asked, gesturing.

Harry's heart began to race. "Er, it's nothing."

They both got off the train and Malfoy wheeled around. "Is there something in your hand that you don't want me to see, Potter?" he drawled.

"It's nothing, Malfoy – hey!"

The blond grabbed his arm and took the vial. He sniffed it but obviously couldn't smell anything.

"It was just my eye potion!" Harry exclaimed hurriedly. "I put it in my drink so I wouldn't taste it."

Malfoy gazed up at him and then snorted. He tossed the empty vial back toward him. "Good. Wouldn't want your horrible eyesight to miss a large blue tree right in front of your face."

Harry clenched his jaw and then stuffed the empty vial in his pocket. "Shut-up."

They checked out their first clue. Someone claimed to have seen the plant hiding under the Quiet Man Bridge. The bridge was made out of stones overlooking a river. They walked down the slope to the place underneath the bridge. There was no sign that anything had ever lived there.

"Damnit! All these clues are useless!"

"Well, we still have a couple more clues to check out."

"We'll check out one more and then find a place to eat lunch. I'm bloody starving!"

Harry followed him down the street. "You could've bought something on the train."

"I want _real_ food, Potter."

By the time they finished checking another location, Harry was starving too. They found a small restaurant to eat at.

"I wish they had butterbeer here."

"They probably have regular beer."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "I'm not trying muggle beer."

Harry shrugged. He had gotten coffee with cream and sugar. He needed the caffeine desperately.

"So Malfoy, can I ask you something?"

"Not while I'm eating."

Harry glared. "You're such a delight to work with."

The blond raised his eyes to glare at him and he continued eating. Harry ate in silence. It was then that his eyes caught sight of someone familiar sitting at a table across the room.

"Oh my gosh," he whispered.

Malfoy swallowed. "What?"

Harry sunk down in his seat a little. He then leaned forward. "Luna's here."

Malfoy turned his head to peer over at her sitting by the window.

"Great. Looney girl."

"Don't call her that. I knew she was traveling with her dad, but seriously, the likelihood of ending up in the same place?"

"It's not a huge city. What's the problem exactly? She has a crush on you or something and you're avoiding her?"

"What? No. I don't think so. Look, this may not be the best time to bring it up but my friends don't exactly know we work together."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? _You're_ embarrassed to be seen with me?"

"If Ron found out that we were working together, he would tell me to quit. And if they ever found out we were living together, I'd never hear the end of it! I mean, never!"

Malfoy snorted. "It's called not letting other people control you, Potter."

Harry was about to make a nasty retort about his father but decided against it. "He would probably have me institutionalized at St. Menge's."

The blond's lips curled into a grin. "Ah yes, the sister center for St. Mungo's where the real crazies go. You'd fit in nicely there, Potter."

"Hilarious. I'm not joking, you know. Ron can overreact."

"You don't say," Malfoy drawled.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

To his relief Luna and her father left without noticing them.

"Okay our last stop is this woodsy area then we can go to Italy."

"Wait. We're going straight to Italy?"

"Yes, Potter," Malfoy said, turning around to face him. "It's too exhausting to go all the way back home when we just have to get back on a train again."

Harry glared at the back of his head when he turned back around. "Great," he muttered.

Just as he feared, their last clue went nowhere as well. Harry was getting all hot and sweaty. It didn't help that they had to race to the train station to catch the last train going to Italy at 6 p.m. from their location. By the time they arrived, most of the compartments were full. They had to share it with a gangly, tall man with glasses and a plump older lady. Harry smiled awkwardly at them as he entered and due to the fact that they were sitting on the same side, he and Malfoy had to sit next to one another. Malfoy took the corner so that he could lean against the wall and prop his feet up of course right next to him.

"I'm so glad to be sitting down right now. We have had to do too much walking. Next time we're bringing our brooms."

"Oh sure, we'll just fly around in front of the muggles."

"Shut-up, Potter," Malfoy retorted.

The man's head across from them shot-up and Harry quickly glanced away and elbowed Malfoy's leg.

"What?" he hissed.

"Don't say my name," Harry whispered.

Malfoy glanced over at the man who was now staring at them, mainly Harry, and then snorted. He leaned his head back against the wall silently. To Harry's relief the man didn't say anything to him.

The food cart came about a half-hour later and Malfoy got some butterbeer. Harry did as well since it was their usual ritual when they were at the house. He was tired enough that he wanted to prop his legs up like Malfoy, but the blond was taking up most of the room.

After an hour of misery, Harry finally got desperate enough that he whacked Malfoy's leg.

"Straighten your legs."

"Excuse me?" he drawled.

"Straighten them," Harry said grabbing onto his leg and pulling it down.

"What the hell are you doing, Pot—"

Harry whacked his leg again to shut him up. He then scooted back to lean against the wall behind him.

"Straighten your legs and move them toward the edge so I can put my legs up."

"I don't think s—"

"Malfoy, do it now," Harry said through clenched teeth. "I'm tired too and I'm not about to sit like this the whole way there."

The blond rolled his eyes but thankfully straightened his other leg and moved it toward the edge of seat. Harry put his legs up and straightened them out so they were between Malfoy's and wall. Unfortunately, due to the width of the seat their legs were firmly up against one another's but Harry didn't care at that point. He turned and saw the man staring at them with wide eyes. The man quickly looked away and went back to reading his paper.

Harry leaned his head back and felt so much relief at being able to straighten his legs out.

Malfoy stretched and then yawned. His leg moved, rubbing against Harry's. They both sipped their butterbeer in comfortable silence. After a while of mostly staring out the window, he heard Malfoy sigh irritably.

"What time is it?"

Harry waved his wand even though he was tempted to tell Malfoy to figure it out for himself. "It's almost 9 and we left about 6 so we should be there soon."

"Good. I want to get this over with."

"What if we don't find anything again? We can't possibly go back completely empty-handed."

Malfoy's blond hair cascaded over his eyes as he tilted his head while it was still resting against the wall.

"And what do you expect us to do if we find nothing? Make something up?"

"No. Just – at least if we were to find a solid clue about the last time it was really spotted or something. Or maybe find the place it had last been. I just think we need to be cautious when looking at the places it was supposedly spotted so we make sure not to miss anything. What did it say our clues were again?"

Sighing in annoyance, Malfoy summoned Dimitri's letter. He was too lazy to hold it so he let it levitate in front of him.

"It says the Egadi Islands and three places are marked. This one place in particular is the house of some old guy many years ago who claimed to have spotted it in his back yard. Maybe one of his descendents lives there now and knows something about it."

"Well, that's the biggest clue out of all of them. We should save that one for last and check out the two more unlikely locations first."

"Fine," Malfoy said, closing his eyes.

_"Ladies and gentlefolk, the stop for Italy is coming up. Passengers please be ready to depart."_

"Finally!"

"Er, Malfoy?"

"What?"

"We're starting kind of late."

"We're obviously not going to start tonight, Potter. We'll book a place at an Inn," Malfoy grumbled. "I need sleep before starting out on this frustrating assignment yet again."

As they hurried off the train, Harry approached his side. "But, er, we didn't make reservations."

"There are several Inns in this area, Potter. I'm sure one of them will have space."

They got to the closest Inn, which of course was completely booked. They had to walk a couple miles out of their way to the next one. By then it was nearing 10 p.m. and both of them were too exhausted to even speak.

"Please tell me you have a room available!" Malfoy snapped at the Inn attendant.

The attendant gave him a look but brushed it aside. "Let's see…well, we only have one room left."

"Bloody hell!" Malfoy snapped. "This is unbelievable. Why are all your Inns booked?!"

"A lot of tourists come around this time. It's not too long after the Christmas holiday and, well, we stay booked until about February. Then we have a slow period until spring time, like around April."

Malfoy clenched his fist. "Is there another Inn that may have a room?"

"The next Inn isn't for miles and I'm not sure if they would have rooms."

"Malfoy," Harry whispered.

"What?" Malfoy snapped, wheeling around.

Harry leaned toward him. "We can just use, you know, to divide the room."

Malfoy thankfully understood what he meant. It was obviously a muggle Inn. At this point Harry was too tired to care that they had to share a room.

"Fine! We'll take it!"

"Excellent!" the Inn keeper said.

Harry paid for the room since he was the only one with muggle cash. To his surprise, when they got up to the room, Malfoy tossed a few coins toward him.

"That's for my share," he said.

Then he wheeled back around glaring at the one bedroom in the middle of the room. Harry saw it and instantly his throat constricted. He wasn't sure exactly why. It wasn't like Malfoy would kill him in his sleep. He had had ample opportunity to do that already.

Harry cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I can split the bed in half."

"First we need to make it bigger, Potter."

Malfoy waved his wand and the bed increased from a queen-sized to a king-sized. That was as much as Malfoy could increase it without the wood snapping. Harry then waved his wand and the bed split into two smaller beds. The room wasn't very big but they placed them on opposite sides of the wall. They were still only ten feet apart. It made sharing the room more tolerable though.

Malfoy waved his wand and was suddenly clad in only his dark, fitted gray boxers. Harry felt awkward since it outlined his private areas a little too well. Harry did the same thing and quickly got under the covers, feeling a bit awkward at having to undress in front of Malfoy, even though the blond had already seen him in his boxers. Harry covered his mouth as he yawned. The sound of Malfoy moving around in his bed to get comfortable was actually quite soothing. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

_ All of a sudden he was standing at Hogwarts. He was watching as everyone was cheering him on for defeating Voldemort. He could feel that he was standing in his own body, but it was as if he was looking through someone else's eyes. _

_ "Let's go before the Ministry arrives."_

_ He felt his gaze switch as he looked up into Lucius Malfoy's face. _

_ "But if we leave they might consider us enemies and hunt us down, right?"_

_ He recognized the soft voice that spoke up. It was definitely Draco's voice but he couldn't see him. He tried to move but he couldn't. _

_ "It doesn't matter. Either way they'll interrogate us and find out exactly what we did," Lucius hissed. "Let's go now while everyone is distracted."_

_ Narcissa Malfoy nodded her head quickly. She was pale and silent. The three of them snuck out the Great Hall and apparated back home. Lucius was rummaging through stuff in a room. _

_ "We have to get rid of any and all evidence!" he snapped. "Move, Draco! We have to get to the back room before—"_

_ "Lucius Malfoy!" A voice bellowed. "Come out now."_

_ It sounded like Kingsley Shacklebolt's voice. It was before he became Minister while he still was an Auror and also a member of the Order. _

_ "Father, what do we do?"_

_ "Shut your damn mouth, Draco! They'll hear you!"_

_ "Oh this is terrible," Narcissa said, her hands shaking. "There's no way I can go to Azkaban."_

_ "Narcissa, you're not helping!"_

_ In seconds Aurors came flooding in and Lucius, who had been trying to get rid of the things in a particular room, had quickly closed the door to the room. He glanced at it once when the Aurors came in, knowing they would search the place. _

_ All of a sudden the scene changed and they were at the Ministry. Harry could see all the Aurors in a circle. It seemed like they were surrounding him only they weren't looking at him. _

_ "Draco, you can only tell us the truth under Veritaserum. Did you kill anyone?"_

_ "No."_

_ "Did you hurt anyone?"_

_ "I tried to kill Dumbledore. I couldn't do it."_

_ "Did you hurt anyone else?"_

_ "I hurt a girl at school by accident. She wasn't supposed to get that necklace."_

_ "Did Lord Voldemort force you to do those things?"_

_ "Yes. And my father."_

_ The Aurors all murmured things together and then Kingsley nodded. "We have already spoken to your parents. You can wait outside now."_

_ Suddenly, he was outside the room. He heard crying. It was very soft; not very noticeable. It reminded him of the time he had seen Draco crying quietly in the bathroom. He still was unable to move even though he could clearly look down at his hands. _

_ The door opened and Harry's attention was on the door. _

_ "Draco, we have made our decision."_

_ It was Kinsgley. The Auror knelt down in front of Draco who was obviously seated although Harry couldn't see him. He saw Kingsley face very clearly and it was full of sympathy. _

_ "Am I going to Azkaban?" Draco asked in a shaky voice. _

_ "No, you're not. Your father is though."_

_ Draco was silent and was breathing heavily. "And my mother?"_

_ "She will be placed on House Arrest. As for you, we will take away your wand for 3 months. You will be on probation for that long doing community service, which means helping us out on our errands as we try to put the Ministry back together. The chaos of the war has thrown everything out of order and there's going to be a lot to do. If you do everything you're told, you will get your wand back after that 3 months but your wand will have restrictions. A charm will be placed on it so that you can't perform any hexes or dark magic. You will be on this probation for a year and if you do well during that time, we will break that binding charm. Do you understand?"_

_ "Y-yes, sir." _

_ "Good," Kingsley said, smiling sadly. "Now, you can see your parents before they take them away. And of course you can still live with your mother at the house. She just won't be able to leave without a Ministry escort for things like shopping and such. She also will not have a wand. That's been taken away from her for 3 years. She will have a charmed bracelet on her wrist so that she cannot use anyone else's wand, including yours. So it will be safe to still reside with your mother at home."_

_ "Okay," Draco said quietly. "How long will my father be in Azkaban?"_

_ Kingsley inhaled deeply. "We haven't determined that. Based on his offenses…they're more egregious than either you or your mother. For now it's 5 years, but there's a possibility that if we interrogate him further and find out that he was forced into the dark arts because of a family member growing up as a child himself, as you were, it may lessen the charges. He may get 1 year in Azkaban and then House Arrest for another 2 years. We haven't decided yet. Considering that he really hasn't killed many people, although he conspired to help Voldemort kill lots of people, he will probably get the 1 year sentence. He has provided resources and helped set up horrible circumstances, making it easier for Voldemort, but at the same time, he has killed very few people himself. He has attempted to kill a couple of people during the war, but that can't really count against him at this point."_

_ Draco didn't say anything in response. _

_ "Now, come on. I'll take you to where your parents are."_

_ Draco was led to a room where his mother and father were. Narcissa's nose was red, as if she had been crying. Lucius was pale, clutching at the arm rest but he seemed rather emotionless. _

_ "Draco!" Narcissa exclaimed. "They told us that you were just getting probation."_

_ "Obviously, Narcissa. The boy couldn't do anything the Dark Lord asked of him," Lucius snapped through a clenched jaw. _

_ "We can go home soon, Draco, but your father…," Narcissa choked on her next words, sniffled and then fell silent. _

_ "Enough blubbering, Narcissa, that does no good!" Lucius snapped. Then he wheeled his head toward Draco. "When you're out doing your simple community service, you need to start warming up to everyone. I need my sentence reduced!" he exclaimed, hitting the armrest. _

_ "I don't understand. What am I supposed to do?"_

_ "Can you do nothing right?" Lucius snapped. "Obviously you suck up to them, bribe them, tell them about all the contacts we have, like at the World Champtions for the Quidditch Cup, just do anything! You find out what they like and then you offer it to them on a silver platter! That shouldn't be hard to grasp."_

_ Narcissa just sniffled. "He'll do whatever it takes, Lucius, don't worry. We'll make sure that you're not in that awful place for too long."_

_ "But father, if they get suspicious that I'm trying to bribe them, I could get in trouble and I don't –"_

_ "You listen to me, boy! You do what I tell you to, do you understand?" Lucius spat. "I'm the one going to the worst place imaginable while both of you get off easy! So you'll do as I ask or I swear even if I can't cast a spell to blast you off the family tree, I can certainly take your inheritance away! Without that you have nothing to live on, and no one to help you out! You need us because we take care of you and without us you're nothing! So you remember that."_

_ "Come on, Lucius, that's enough. They might be listening," Narcissa said. "Draco will come home with me and I'll help him out. I'll tell him what he needs to do. We'll get this all figured out."_

_ The door opened and Kingsley appeared along with several other Aurors. _

_ "It's time, Lucius."_

_ Narcissa grasped onto the bracelet that was around her wrist and stood. Her lip was quivering but she remained composed. Lucius stood up slowly and stared down at Draco. While he wasn't looking directly at Harry, he could clearly see the ferocity in his gaze. _

Harry suddenly was jolted out of the dream and opened his eyes. He was lying on his side facing Malfoy. The blond was still asleep, but he was turning over. At first, Harry wondered if his dreams were that imaginative until a thought struck him. Was it possible that he had been inside Malfoy's memory? Was that what the Astringo potion was meant to do? If so, did that mean he had access to any and all of Malfoy's memories, or even his dreams? His heart began to beat faster in his chest. He could literally find out Malfoy's deepest darkest secrets. He wondered if there was a way to control what memories he could access. He attempted to think about Malfoy and the Archives to try to find out why Malfoy was in the room, but he couldn't fall back asleep. He would have to try again next time.

To his dismay, Malfoy woke up a few minutes later. The blond gazed over at him to see that he was up.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked.

Harry couldn't help but stifle a laugh. Malfoy's blond hair was in disarray and his eyes were bleary and non-threatening as they stared at him groggily.

"Not long."

Harry stared at him and realized that Malfoy seemed relaxed so he must not have dreamed what Harry had just seen. Unless he was just hiding it really well.

"We can get breakfast to go and eat it on the way. I want this day to be over quickly."

Sighing, Harry got up and waved his wand to get dressed. They went downstairs to order breakfast to go before leaving. They decided to start with the location that was furthest away (and one of the least likely clues). Malfoy was using Dimitri's map to find the location. It was only after two hours of walking, and Malfoy's cursing, for Harry to realize that they were deep in a marsh and his pants were getting wet. The water was shallow and grass and other weeds were completely overtaking the water, sprouting up to their waists.

"Malfoy, where the hell are we?"

"How the hell should I know?"

"You're the one with the map!" Harry exclaimed. "Don't tell me we're lost!"

"We're not lost, Potter! This mark that Dimitri put here isn't specific to where in this area the plant was seen!"

"Let me see that!" Harry said, wading through the water to reach his side. He peered at the map, ignoring Malfoy's glare, to see that the blinking dot was pointing to the area. Upon further inspection, he saw the other previous dots they had gone to and recognized one of the landmark symbols was upside down. The names of the areas themselves that appeared were charmed to read straight no matter how you held it.

"Malfoy, the map is upside down!" Harry snapped.

"What?! No, it's…"

Malfoy stopped and peered at the map again. He turned it around and the words flipped so they could be read accurately.

"Well, that's not my fault! Dimitri shouldn't have put this stupid charm on it!"

"That's just great! We're at least 2 miles away from the real site of the clue! And we're soaking wet!"

"Stop whining, Potter! You're getting on my nerves!"

Harry angrily snatched the map out of his hands. "I'm directing from here on out."

"It was a simple mistake! Now give that back!"

"No! You clearly are directionally challenged! I wasn't even born in the wizard world and I could tell that the map had been charmed with a reverse effect!"

Malfoy's expression darkened. "Insult me one more time, Potter!"

"Or what?" Harry challenged, raising his voice loudly.

Without warning something burst up from the water. A weed that was clearly magical and hiding among the regular grass and weeds appeared and rose to the level of their faces. Harry and Malfoy didn't even have time to shout or grab their wands as the black weed sprouted a bulb, which opened in a split second revealing a strange purple, pollen-like center. It squirted at them, covering them with a sticky substance before it dove back underwater.

"UGH!" Malfoy exclaimed.

Harry stood there blinking in shock as he tried to piece together what just happened. The plant spit at them angrily and they were covered in purple goo.

"Damnit! A Purple Tritabloom."

"A _what_?"

"It's a stupid plant that gets territorial and if disturbed by loud noises will spit its colorful goop at anyone nearby. Why the hell does something so stupid and useless even exist?"

The water began to rumble and Malfoy's eyes widened. The two of them dashed through the shallow marsh away from the angry plant. Harry made a sound of surprise as the plant began to chase them through the marsh.

"Don't let it wrap around you! It will turn your skin purple for hours!" Malfoy shouted.

"Great! Thanks for telling me this now!" Harry retorted.

When they both got to the edge of the marsh, Malfoy yelled for him to dive to the ground. They both threw themselves at the ground and rolled. The plant began hissing at them as it stood at the very edge of the marsh, still entrenched in water.

They both stood up sopping wet, disheveled and still covered in some purple goop. They quickly walked away from the marsh as the plant prepared to spit at them again.

"I hate this bloody assignment!" Malfoy grumbled as they walked back down the path they came.

Harry made a sound of agreement. He glanced behind him to see Malfoy waving his wand over his hair to get the purple goop out. Harry did the same thing to his clothes.

"Well that was educational," Harry muttered sarcastically. Though he did learn about a plant he had never heard of.

Malfoy shook his head and sighed irritably. "For all the shit we've been putting up with, we better find this stupid tree."

"Yeah," Harry said. He glanced over at the blond realizing that working with him wasn't so bad. It was kind of entertaining. Except of course for the near-death experiences. While this was a frustrating assignment, at least it was harmless in that respect.

This time Harry took charge of the map and they were able to find the right spot. It was a small grassy hilltop with trees were it could hide, at least from muggle sight. The plant was only visible to wizards. Of course they found no clue that it had ever been there.

"Does this plant even ooze at all? How are we supposed to know for sure if it's been here?"

"Supposedly it produces a slime when it moves that glows in the dark. You can use a spell to produce the glow too."

"Oh, like a blacklight."

"A what?"

Harry shook his head. "Nevermind."

"Was that another muggle reference?"

"I said nevermind, Malfoy."

The second place they checked out was less eventful. It was within a small garden along a dirt road. They didn't see any slime there although Malfoy was startled by a grasshopper. That was enough to make it worthwhile.

"Stop snickering, Potter!"

"I can't help it. The way you reacted when it jumped past your face was hilarious."

"After being spit at by a plant that jumped out at us, I think I have every right to be suspicious. And what the hell was that thing?"

"It's a muggle bug so you wouldn't want to know."

"Whatever. Thank Merlin we're finally heading for our last stop."

Harry looked up at the sky. It was a lot later than he expected. It had taken them most of the day already to check out the other two locations, especially since they had gotten lost. Their last stop was a house. Hopefully the person who lived there was a descendant of the old man who used to live there decades ago and claimed he spotted one in his back yard.

"Let me do the talking, Potter," Malfoy said as they approached the door.

"A muggle probably lives here, Malfoy. I don't think that's such a great idea."

Malfoy glared at him and proceeded to knock on the door. An old man with a balding head and a gray beard answered.

"May I help you gentlemen?"

"Yes. We're just wondering if you've seen a Blue Snargaluff Tree," Malfoy said.

The old man peered at them and then scratched his chin. "I don't know what that is. Don't really know my trees too well. I don't think I've seen one. Did you say a blue tree?"

"Er, it's not really blue. It's a misnomer," Harry added. "I'm Harry and this – "

"Draco," Malfoy said quickly.

"Oh, nice to meet you. I'm Evan. Er, I'd invite you in but it's kind of messy. I wasn't expecting company."

"That's fine. You haven't seen anything strange? Any strange plants growing in your yard?"

"Strange? Nope. Can't say I have. Sorry."

"Are you by chance related to a Ilmitay Grindle?" Harry asked.

"Oh, why, yes. That's my great-great grandfather. Why do you ask?"

"No reason. He had just – " Malfoy started.

"He made a report, a complaint really, that there were some strange weeds growing in his back yard that could be fatal," Harry said. "We just wanted to make sure that these weeds are still not growing back. We've been checking other houses in the area as well."

Malfoy gazed at Harry looking surprised but relieved.

"I see. I'm sorry. I never knew about that. I haven't seen anything strange in the yard."

"Well, thanks for your time," Harry said quickly before Malfoy could snap at the man.

Evan smiled politely and then shut his door. Malfoy's shoulders slumped as they walked away.

"Great! Nothing! This was a complete waste of time and energy, not to mention money!"

Harry rubbed his temple. "Let's just get back to the Inn. It's almost 8. Do you think any trains are leaving?"

"Probably not going back to our place. I guess we'll have to stay one more night," Malfoy said.

Harry sighed. They both trudged back to the Inn. They ordered dinner, which they brought up to the room. Then as they were eating, Malfoy decided to worsen Harry's mood.

"We should get to bed after this, Potter. We're catching the first train back at 7."

Harry glared. The blond didn't even consider asking for Harry's permission to wake up at the crack of dawn. He was too tired to argue so he didn't say anything.

The second he got under his covers he pictured the Archives room, chanting the question of why Malfoy was in there.

_The hallway was long and narrow. It was familiar. The floating lights dancing on the ceilings glimmered as he continued down it. He wasn't sure where he was at first. He felt his breath catch in his throat. Coming up before him was the Archives room. He wasn't able to control this memory even though he wanted to hurry up and get through it already to see what was on the other side. He was walking down the hallway and he was obviously following someone's vision. He could see straight ahead as if it was through his own eyes except that it wasn't because he was only following. Still, he couldn't see anyone around him. The door to the Archives room began to open and they stepped inside. _

_Harry's excitement grew as the door closed behind him and he could hear movement. His body moved forward against his will as they walked past all the shelves Harry had looked at and went toward the back of the room. His heartbeat only quickened when Malfoy whispered something and then a door appeared at the back of a wall. It was a hidden door! That's why he couldn't figure out what Malfoy was up to. How did Malfoy even know it was there? The door wasn't locked. It wasn't as though Malfoy was breaking into it, but then why was it hidden? There wasn't a sign above this door and as they entered the dark room, Harry could feel his throat constrict. _

_Suddenly the scene blurred out. His forehead throbbed like it used to when his scar was active, only it wasn't coming from the scar. It was the same feeling he had when he had the vision of Mr. Weasley getting bit. All of a sudden he was outside the door to Evan's house. Inside, Evan was cleaning up his house, moving containers stained with blue specks. He was muttering to himself and then he opened his closet door. Something blue and vine-like tried to strike him. _

"_Now, now, don't be like that. I don't want to have to subdue you again. It's almost time for the next dose," Evan said with a smile. He held up an empty vial. "Once midnight comes, my dear, it will only take a minute and it will be all over."_

_The image began to blur with that of the hidden room in the Archives. _

Suddenly, Harry jolted up in bed gasping. He was covered in sweat. His bangs were sticking to his forward and his bare chest was heaving. A thin layer of perspiration covered his skin.

"Potter, what the hell is your problem?"

Harry turned to see Malfoy leaning on his elbow in his bed. He was staring at him, clearly awake. Had Harry been saying something in his dream?

"You were thrashing in your bed and it woke me up."

"Malfoy, we have to go back!" Harry said jumping out of bed. He didn't even care that he was clad in his boxers and rushing around looking for his wand.

"What are you talking about?" Malfoy then glanced at Harry's shiny skin from the perspiration. "What kind of a dream were you having?" he drawled with a smirk.

"What? Oh, for – that's sick, Malfoy."

"You're the one covered in sweat and it's not hot out," Malfoy pointed out.

After Harry put on his pants manually, finally realizing that his wand was in his pants pocket, he rushed over to Malfoy's side of the bed. The blond stared at him uncertainly and he gazed at Harry's chest for a split second before looking back up at his face.

"It wasn't a dream, it was a premonition. Evan was lying to us."

Malfoy stared at him in confusion. "A premonition? I heard a rumor that you got those but– "

"Yes, I do! And I had one of Evan. He has the blue tree in his house."

"_What?!_" Malfoy snapped, throwing his covers off. He stood up in front of Harry. It was involuntary reflex to gaze at Malfoy's body, realizing that he was wearing a different set of boxers that night – they were dark blue. "That bloody asshole!"

Malfoy grabbed his wand, waved it over his body and was dressed. Harry found his shirt, threw it on, and they both hurried out the door. Harry waved his wand to check the time.

"Damn! We have to hurry! In 20 minutes he's going to do something with the tree."

Malfoy gazed at him as they ran. "Do you have any idea what we're interrupting here?"

The way he asked that made Harry's expression turn to one of disgust, but he snorted in amusement.

"Really? I think it's you whose mind is in the gutter."

"In the what?"

"It means sex is on your mind," Harry said irritably. "And no, I don't know much. I saw him with an empty vial."

"He must be taking samples, but why?" Malfoy wondered aloud.

"We're almost there," Harry whispered. "Let's hide out and watch through the window."

They finally got there with ten minutes to spare. They ducked down and approached one of the windows. They could see a dirty kitchen but nothing else. They went around the back of the house and peered through another window. Evan was there standing at a table which held two bowls and a vial being held into place.

"He must be getting ready. I saw the tree in his closet," Harry said gesturing to the closed door nearby where Evan was standing.

Malfoy gazed at it and then at him. "Clearly. And by the way, my mind was not in the gutter."

Harry glanced at him in amusement. "Really? So the first conclusion you have of me waking up in a sweat is because I'm having a wet-dream."

"Right, because premonition is the first that comes to mind," Malfoy drawled sarcastically.

"Then the first conclusion you had of Evan is him having a very inappropriate relationship with a plant."

"Some people do that, Potter. They're sickos and they usually end up in St. Menge's, but they exist."

Harry gave him a mortified look. "You said I would fit in at St. Menge's! That's more of an insult than I first thought," he said, hitting Malfoy's arm.

The blond snorted in response, grinning. Harry turned toward the window and his heart nearly leaped out of his chest when he saw Evan was turning around in their direction. He did the first thing that came to mind.

"Get down!" He whispered harshly and threw himself on top of Malfoy until they were both lying on the ground, with Harry on top.

"Potter! What the – "

"Shh!" Harry hissed.

The window opened and they both held their breath. Harry craned his neck upward, being able to see the edge of the window. He could feel Malfoy's heart beating incredibly fast.

"What a beautiful night," Evan said, sticking his head out.

Thankfully, he stuck his head back inside but left the window open. Harry turned to Malfoy to tell him they should hurry and didn't anticipate how close they were. He found himself staring into Malfoy's eyes while their noses were an inch apart. Malfoy's eyes were astonishing up close. From a distance they appeared a hazel-gray. Up close his eyes were more hazel with many specks of gray mixed in and up close the combination made his eyes appear more silver. Malfoy was staring into his eyes wordlessly. Harry knew that only seconds had passed but it felt longer.

"Sorry. He was coming our way," he whispered.

Malfoy just gave him a curious look. To Harry's surprise, he didn't look angry. His attention was drawn to the sound of clanking through the open window.

Harry slowly got up off Malfoy and they stayed down beneath the window. Very slowly, Harry peered up to see him mixing something in the bowls. Then he took the vial and began to walk toward the closet.

"Okay. What's the plan?"

"I don't know. Stun him, I guess," Malfoy said.

"Maybe we should wait. While he's…doing whatever with the plant and he's distracted, we can sneak inside."

"The plant would certainly see us, Potter. It would draw too much attention."

"Look. I have a suspicion that he's not a wizard. If you act as a distraction, I can sneak up behind him and stun him."

"Why do I have to be the distraction?"

"Just go to the door and knock on it. I'll stay here and watch."

Grumbling, Malfoy crept back around the house and disappeared from view. Harry watched the closet open although he couldn't see what was inside of it.

"Now, my pretty little thing, here we – what the hell is that? Who is knocking at this hour?"

Evan ignored the knocking at first. "No. This has to be done at midnight! I cannot afford to be distracted."

Harry had no choice now. It was one minute until midnight. He crept up through the window. Just as he pulled out his wand, Evan wheeled around.

"I knew I sensed someone!" he exclaimed. "My senses are incredibly heightened!"

"Stop right now!" Harry exclaimed. "That plant is not meant to be kept captive!"

For an old man, Evan dove pretty fast behind the table. Harry kept his wand pointed and was shocked when a book came pelting at him. He used a spell to stop it midair but just then Evan had his wand suddenly pointed at him and Harry felt his body turn to jello. He collapsed and stared up at Evan who was pointing his wand down at him.

"That was quite clever using a knocking charm to distract me. Unless your friend is here as well. Say one word and he will join you."

"I'm here alone. He's not my friend."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Your lover."

"My what?" Harry asked wide-eyed.

Evan quickly went to peer out the window by the front door and came running back. "Seems like you are here alone. It's midnight and I have work to do."

"What the hell are you going to do to that plant?"

"I'm going to milk it of its juice that comes out of these beautiful buds. They only bloom at midnight under the light of the moon. So long as the light is touching it they will stay bloomed, but it's very tricky to milk it once they have completely opened up, so I've learned that if I catch it just before it opens at midnight, I can more easily milk it."

"Why?" Harry asked.

Evan went over to the plant, which was struggling to break free of some sort of binding charm. He held up the empty vial toward the bud that was now forming on one of its tendrils.

"Because its nectar has been sustaining me."

"You…you're the great-great grandfather?

Evan chuckled as he placed his wand toward the bud to hold it still and then held the vial directly under the tip of the bud.

"No. I did lie a little. He wasn't my great-great grandfather, just my great-grandfather. I was just a kid when he spotted this thing in his back yard. I didn't realize he had reported it. I was much too young. Of course, being young makes you do stupid things too. After my great-grandfather died, at a ripe age of 115, I curiously went over to check the strange thing out. It was very comfortable in the back yard hiding behind the other plantlife. It attempted to attack when I approached it and I had my great-grandfather's wand in hand at the time. I was barely old enough to have a wand. Since I didn't know what I was doing a charm sputtered out of the tip and accidentally sliced off one of the tendrils with a bud. I took it back with me and when the bud died after an hour or so, this strange blue liquid poured out."

As he spoke, blue liquid poured into the vial. "Being a child, I tasted it. Immediately it heightened my senses. I could see farther, smell farther, hear farther. It was amazing. I placed that bud in a container and kept it to study. I realized that after tasting it my spells were stronger as well. Over time, as I snuck out to take samples without my parents knowing, I began to feel…indescribable. I know it's this plant juice that's keeping me alive. I take it every few weeks now. I'm 120 years old."

"You're still aging. One day you're going to die."

"You don't know that!" he barked. "You don't know anything! I have studied this plant for years."

Evan hungrily glanced down at the vial and raised it up toward his mouth. Suddenly, his eyes bulged out. He was frozen in place. Malfoy appeared from behind the door to the room.

"Malfoy! How did you get in here?"

"Well, after I heard you shouting I figured he'd be too distracted to notice someone was reversing his protection charms on the front door."

Evan moved his pupils around but was unable to do anything else.

"Did you hear what he said?"

"Yeah, the whole psychotic bit," Malfoy said. "I figured I'd let him go on till his guard was down. I'll take that."

Malfoy took the vial out of Evan's hands. The older man made a sound in the back of his throat. Harry started moving his fingers but he could do little else.

"Er, Malfoy, a little help."

Malfoy smirked as he came to stand in front of him. "I don't know. This position rather suits you."

Harry glared from the floor. He was lying face down on the floor, thankfully with his head turned to the side. He saw Evan roll his eyes dramatically. Harry's eyebrows furrowed. He did not want to know what the man was thinking.

"What kind of a hex is it?"

"I don't know but my body feels like jello."

"Oh, right." Malfoy muttered a reverse charm and Harry picked himself up off the floor.

"How long will he stay like that?"

"Long enough for us to call the Aurors in this area," Malfoy said, grinning at the frozen man.

"What about the plant?" Harry asked, pointing to it.

It was still thrashing about in the closet unable to come out.

"Let's just leave it. We already have a sample," he said gesturing to the vial.

"Wait. If this plant can extend life or heighten senses, maybe it can cure lots of things. I'm just afraid that if we let the Aurors take it, they'll kill it or set it free and we'll never find it again."

"So what do you propose we do, Potter?"

Evan's eyes widened at the name.

"I think we should try to take it back with us."

Malfoy's mouth opened in disbelief. "You're insane. How the hell would we get it on the train? And what happens if we can't subdue it and it gets loose on the train?! I can just see the Daily Prophet now. _The famous Harry Potter and infamous Draco Malfoy destroy the train, ruin many lives, endanger a hostile and rare plant, and get fired from their job_."

Harry rolled his eyes. "You're so dramatic. We can sedate it and – I've got it! We can take it with us in the form of an animal."

"What? You mean transfigure it? That's hard enough to do with inanimate objects let alone living things, Potter!"

"Why, are you not up for the challenge?" Harry retorted with a raised eyebrow.

Uncrossing his arms, Malfoy just slowly shook his head. "Fine. I'm blaming you if anything goes wrong."

"Nothing will go wrong. Besides, Dimitri will be delighted to have a full plant and not just a sample. And I think Dimitri will give this plant a nice home while studying it. He loves plants. He'll take very good care of it."

Harry turned to the plant, which had finally stopped thrashing but was still twitching its tendrils as if suspicious of him. Concentrating hard, Harry pictured a dog in his head and then said the spell. The plant slowly began to shrink and grow fur until it was a strange, pale Maltipoo. Harry then stunned it, reversed the charm on the closet, and reached in to pick up the now strangely slippery dog.

"Okay. Ready."

They sent up sparks to alert the Aurors who came in a matter a minutes. They explained the situation.

"He didn't hurt anyone," Harry said, "but he still should get a warning for misusing a plant creature."

One of the Aurors nodded. "Of course. We'll make sure of that. Are you sure it's safe?" she asked pointing to the dog.

"Oh yes, keeping it in this form just makes it easier to pass by muggles."

She nodded. They were free to leave and they had 6 hours to get some sleep. Harry had to set his alarm every 3 hours to make sure the sedation and spell were holding on the dog. When they left the Inn, the Inn keeper yelled at them for sneaking in a pet. Thankfully, they were already leaving.

That early in the morning they were able to find an empty compartment. Harry set the dog on his lap and stroked its head. Malfoy watched him in amusement.

"Why are you doing that, Potter? It's not really a dog."

"I'm trying to keep it calm, Malfoy," Harry shot back.

The compartment door opened and a lady came in with a cart full of snacks and drinks.

"Good morning, gentlemen! We have some great breakfast treats if you're interested."

"Very interested," Malfoy said.

She chuckled. Then she caught sight of the dog. "Oh, what a sweet dog."

She went over to pet it. The dog didn't do much of anything.

"Is he okay?"

"He's just a little tired. We've had a long trip."

"Oh, of course," she said, smiling.

Malfoy got a hot breakfast sandwich with fried Occulmy eggs and Harry got a more normal breakfast of eggs, with toast and bacon. Malfoy also got a cold, strange flavored drink that was teal colored. Harry just got some tea.

"If you need anything else – oh my stars!"

She gasped and stared at the dog. Blue goo was starting to ooze from its eyes.

"Oh, it's okay. That's been happening a lot," Harry said quickly. He grabbed his wand from his pocket and waved it over the dog, cleaning up the transfiguring spell without saying a word so she wouldn't know what spell he used. "He's just sick."

"Oh the poor thing. I've never seen that happen!"

"It's, er, a parasite. It's been making him sick but we're on our way to the doctor when we get back home so…"

Malfoy just smiled awkwardly and nodded. She nodded too, glancing back at the dog briefly before leaving the compartment. Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was close."

"What exactly is a parasite?"

"Seriously? Wizards don't even have those?" Harry asked incredulously. "They're microscopic insect-type things that can get into your body and cause you to become ill."

Malfoy made a nasty face. "Lovely. I'm so glad I'm not a muggle."

He took a swig of his strange drink which seemed to smoke as he breathed out. The entire bottle was frosty too. Almost as if it was frozen.

"What is that?" Harry asked.

"It's blueberry nettle juice."

"Nettles. Those are used in tea, and wine, right?"

"Yes. They have a lot of flavor and they can be charmed to imitate any kind of fruit flavor. Probably even any jellybean flavor too. If you recall Potions class at all, Potter, they're also used in several potion cures, like curing boils."

"Oh, right. Yeah, I don't remember. Nor do I care."

Malfoy snorted. "I can see why you failed."

"First of all, I didn't fail, I just got a poor grade. And second of all, a Death Eater was teaching the class, for the most part. Snape was completely…," Harry hesitated. "Biased against me. Or at least, he portrayed that."

Malfoy's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean by that?"

Harry shrugged. "He wasn't the man I thought he was. You know, he was really a spy against Voldemort. That came out after the Battle of Hogwarts."

"Because you told the Ministry and reporters."

"I wanted him to get his due credit. I mean, he created the most powerful potion I had ever seen that hid the memories and feelings he wanted kept away from Voldemort's powerful Legilmency. I still have never known any other book to have whatever potion Snape used. He obviously created it himself. I mean, he was a genius."

Malfoy smiled. "Wow. Didn't realize you admired him so much."

Harry glared. "Well, I do now that I know the truth. He was an ass to me throughout school though."

Malfoy pursed his lips. "Is it true he was in love with your mother?"

Harry opened his mouth and then shut it. "Damnit, Ron! I can't believe he blabbed that. That was something I told him and Hermione in confidence!"

Shrugging, the blond propped his legs up. "It's not that big a deal."

Harry glanced at him. "Was Snape really your Godfather?"

"Yes, Potter, everyone knew that," he drawled. He took another sip of his drink and Harry watched as the bottle frosted again and a cool myst erupted as Malfoy took his sip.

"Seriously, how does it do that?"

Malfoy laughed. "You are such a child. You're in awe about everything."

"At least I have so many things to be excited about. I mean, this whole world has so many things I don't know about. I don't envy you because you take it all for granted. Nothing really excites you."

Malfoy's smile faded and he shrugged. "Doesn't matter."  
>"Hey! If you take me to one of those wizard resort things, I could take you on a muggle rollercoaster!"<p>

Malfoy nearly choked on his drink. "I'm not going to the muggle world for anything, Potter!"

"Stop being a bigot!"

Malfoy glared. "No. I hardly think anything muggle-related will excite me."

"You don't know that. Their new rollercoasters nowadays go faster than our brooms and flying cars."

The blond gazed at him curiously. Harry smiled. "First you have to promise me that you will also take me to a wizard hotel or resort."

Rolling his eyes, Malfoy sighed. "Fine. If we ever get a vacation, we can go. Besides, I've been meaning to check out one of the newer ones they have in America."

"Wow, really?"

"Yeah, supposedly it's the first one with 100 floors."

"100 floors!" Harry exclaimed. "That's incredible! We should go!"

Malfoy just smirked at Harry's excitement. A comfortable silence took over. Harry sat back and thought about the potion. He felt kind of bad for taking it now, although he was curious about what Malfoy was doing in that hidden room in the Archives. Maybe he could complete that memory. Just to make sure Malfoy wasn't getting himself into trouble. He didn't seem dangerous like his parents. In the last memory, the Ministry only put Malfoy on probation so he couldn't have done anything that horrible. He did try to kill Dumbledore and almost killed a student, but at the same time he did seem like he didn't want to any of that. Harry still remembered lying helplessly while invisible, watching as Dumbledore was killed. Malfoy had had tears streaming down his face. Clearly, he didn't want to hurt him. That's the only reason that Harry was able to forgive him for doing that.

Then it struck him that in a couple of days the Ministry celebration was happening. Harry had to get an outfit. Not to mention he had no one to go with. Taking in a deep breath, Harry decided to press his luck since he and Malfoy were getting along.

"Hey, Malfoy."

"What?" he asked, turning toward him. His gaze wasn't annoyed; he just stared at him intently. He seemed to be in a relatively good mood, probably because their frustrating trip wasn't a waste.

"Er, there's this celebration going on at the Ministry in a couple of days. It's just like the Minister's way of congratulating me, although I'm a little suspicious."

"Why?" Malfoy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A part of me wonders if the Aurors there also are trying to get me to still join their department. I'm hoping they won't hound me too much. But anyway, I was just wondering if you wanted to come."

Both of Malfoy's eyebrows rose.

"Before you say anything, I know it sounds boring. But there will be free food, really good food from what I understand, free drinks, all kinds, bands playing, and I think even games. I'm not sure of all the details exactly."

Malfoy snorted. "Why are you asking me and not Weasel or someone? Did they ditch you?"

"Well, Hermione's busy with mediwitch school and Ron's in Romania studying dragon training with his brother. Besides, I figure since we're working together and living together, we might as well make it even more awkward and go out in public pretending to be friends."

The blond's eyebrows rose a bit and he leaned his head back against the wall. "Wow. Granger is in mediwitch school. I didn't see that coming. And especially Weasel with dragons. That was something I never pictured, except for maybe him screaming like a girl while running away from one."

Harry couldn't quite stifle a laugh at the image. Malfoy smirked. "Fine, Potter. I don't have anything better to do. When is it?"

"It's in two days. It's a semi-formal event so you don't have to get too dressed up."

"Please. Those Aurors are going to be wearing their best velvet robes. I'm not showing up in anything less."

Harry felt relieved that Malfoy actually agreed to come with him. "Thanks. It would be so dull if I had to go by myself."

"Yeah, well, I already saved you once today, why not keep it going," he drawled.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Okay. Don't get too carried away now. It's not like I owe you my life. I don't think Evan was going to kill me." Harry paused. "I hope not."

They fell into another comfortable silence.

When they got back, they immediately went up to Dimitri's office. Malfoy explained the whole situation about the vial as he handed it to him.

"Wow. That's quite an adventure you two had."

"You don't even know the half of it," Malfoy muttered.

"So what happened to the plant?" Dimitri asked curiously. "Did the Aurors free it?"

"Actually, sir, we did something…," Harry said, glancing at Malfoy.

Dimitri stared at them curiously and then Harry stepped out to pick up the dog which was sitting outside the door.

"I used a transfiguring spell."

"Amazing!" Dimitri said. "This is it?"

"Yeah. The spell probably won't hold for too much longer, but we figured that you'd give it a really nice home. Plus, it might be important to study the whole creature. The fact that the juice inside the bud can do so much…I don't know. We were thinking maybe it could actually be helpful for curing some ailments."

"Wonderful! And this was explained to the Aurors there?"

"Yes. Potter wanted to steal it illegally but I convinced him not to."

Dimitri laughed, clearly understanding it as a joke. Harry still glared at Malfoy.

"Well, I will put him in our garden immediately."

"Garden?" Harry asked curiously.

"Oh my! That's right! I still haven't shown you both it. Sometimes we do take more than samples. Sometimes we can't get samples so we've had to capture certain creatures. Most of them we release back into the wild once we're done, but if they're endangered like this species, well, we give them a wonderful home here. Follow me!"

Harry and Malfoy exchanged looks before following him out. They passed by the Archives room and Harry glanced at it momentarily. They walked toward the elevator and went up to the highest floor, the 20th floor. They then walked down the hallway, which was beautiful. At the top floor, there were more windows letting in sunlight as they walked across to the large doors. On the other side of the doors was an even more amazing sight.

There were trees and plants everywhere, normal and magical ones. Grass was charmed to grow on the floor, covering the place like a beautiful meadow. The ceiling was so incredibly tall to fit some of the plant creatures that nestled up by the large crystal-like window that was charmed to bring in a lot of sunlight. It was like a huge dome ceiling made entirely out of glass so that the sun was constantly shining in. Various plant creatures were moving about, some of them hanging out in the charmed river that flowed from the entrance all the way down to a waterfall that extended to a lower portion of the floor. It was enormous and amazing. Flowers bloomed, some of them normal and food for the plant-like creatures, or decorative, and other plant-creatures looked like flowers but would scatter away when they approached.

"This is amazing!" Harry exclaimed.

He glanced at Malfoy who was smiling. Harry had never seen him smile so genuinely. He rather preferred it. The blond caught his gaze and Harry smiled quickly before looking away. He hoped that Malfoy didn't notice he had been staring.

"Some of our plant-creatures come out at night. This window is also charmed to take in as much moonlight as possible. Even if the moon is half covered and shining a little bit a distance away, it will draw in any light from the sun or moon even if it's not aimed directly at it. It provides the perfect nurturing environment for our creatures."

Harry watched as plants with many little feet passed by him. Dimitri then picked up the dog, which had started leaking from its eyes again.

"From what I understand, they thrive in the moonlight, but they also like the sunlight. It's the first plant that I know of that can thrive in both."

"Well, the buds came out under the light of the full moon. And at midnight for some reason."

"Hmm, I'll have to keep an eye on that. Very interesting," Dimitri said, rubbing his chin.

They watched as the dog began to morph back into its large, tall, branchy, blue body. Its vine-like tendrils moved about. At first the plant didn't move. Then it finally gravitated toward the waterfall and began to slink down the rocky side of it toward the bottom. They peered over the edge and watched as it made itself comfortable on top of a hill surrounded by tall grass.

"Well it seems to have made itself at home. I will study the vial immediately! Amazing job, you two! I knew I chose well," he said grinning. "And here is your pay for an excellent job well-done! I put in a bonus for you since I didn't actually expect you would find a living Blue Snargaluff Tree! This is so exciting!"

Malfoy grinned as their envelopes floated over to them. He raised an eyebrow at Harry before stuffing it in his pocket.

"I don't have any assignments for you right now."

"Er, that's okay. There's a Ministry celebration going on in a couple of days anyway."

"Oh, yes, that's right!" Dimitri exclaimed. "Are both of you going?"

"Yep," Malfoy said.

Harry sensed that Malfoy was actually proud to be going. He wondered why. He thought Malfoy hated the Ministry and the Aurors based on what happened with his parents.

"Well, have fun you two! You can come back in a week to check for another assignment. In the meantime, why don't you stay for lunch? As a celebration for finding this amazing creature!"

"Thanks," Harry said.

"I'll meet you back at my office in just a few!"

Malfoy headed out first and Harry turned around to see Dimitri talking with his other assistants. All of a sudden, Harry saw Cyprian appear from near the ceiling where there was apparently a small protected laboratory area. He spotted Harry and waved. Then his eyes caught sight of Malfoy and his smile faded. Malfoy had turned when he saw Harry stop and spotted Cyprian as well. Harry wondered if Malfoy had done something to piss him off. Harry walked out behind Malfoy.

"That kid is seriously annoying."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, he is."

"Well, Potter, since I know you're clueless about the wizard world, and I assume you don't know what to wear to a proper Ministry get-together, I'm going to do you a favor and take you there."

Harry smiled again. "Thanks, Malfoy. Even though you're saying it in a belittling manner, I'm going to ignore that this time."

The blond smirked.

"Er, are we going today?"

"No, tomorrow. I'm too exhausted to shop today."

Harry nodded. It was 1 by the time they had lunch with Dimitri and some of his assistants. They were the ones from the room who mainly took care of all the live creatures they had. Unfortunately, Cyprian was there. He decided to sit next to Harry while Malfoy sat on his other side. Cyprian kept interrupting their conversations to ask Harry questions, which started getting annoying. Thankfully, Dimitri did a lot of talking, telling stories about some of their creatures and how they were captured.

A few hours later they headed back home, after having visited the lab also to see how data was stored and collected. Malfoy had actually been sincerely interested and didn't seem unhappy being there that long.

Just as they were leaving, Cyprian grabbed his arm and whispered. "Harry, is there something going on with him?"

Harry glanced over at Malfoy and then back at him. "What do you mean?"

Cyprian didn't respond as Dimitri came over and pulled Harry into a hug, after he had already hugged Malfoy. He hadn't stopped praising them all throughout lunch. This just seemed to make Cyprian more irritable. Harry figured he was jealous of the find.

They finally got home around 5. Harry realized there wasn't much in the fridge.

"Hey, I'll go pick up some more food and drinks. What do you want?"

Malfoy thought for a second. "You can get some Cinnamon Nettle Juice, Butterbeer, of course, Midnight Rose, and definitely some more fried Occulmy eggs."

"Okay."

Malfoy listed off a few more things and Harry charmed a parchment to write everything down that he was saying. It took him an hour to do the shopping and get back with everything. They both hung out in the kitchen making their dinners. Harry made himself an omelet with some of the fried Occulmy eggs and Malfoy made a sandwich with Hiflefish meat. Then Malfoy took a Butterbeer, as did Harry, and they went to the living room to lie on the couches in front of the fireplace as they ate.

"That was such an amazing floor," Harry said, after ten minutes of silence.

"Yeah, it was."

Harry was actually grateful to the blond. He didn't have anyone else to hang out with right now and life would be pretty boring without him. After a relaxing dinner, Harry decided to call it a night early.

"At least we finally get a bit of a break."

"Yeah," Malfoy snorted.

"What time do you want to leave tomorrow to go shopping?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Maybe 11. I want to sleep in a bit tomorrow anyway."

Harry nodded. "Okay. Er, goodnight."

Malfoy hesitated after they stopped at Harry's floor before continuing up to his own. "Goodnight," he said.

Harry went into his room, got ready for bed, and lay down. He was exhausted but content. It had been a pretty interesting adventure. He really liked this job. He actually really enjoyed being partners with Malfoy too, as shocking as that was.

Closing his eyes, Harry fell asleep forgetting all about his desire to know more about the hidden door in the Archives room.

_He found himself at Evan's house again. He was hiding beneath the window only this time Evan didn't peer his head out. Harry was watching as he threw himself atop of Malfoy. This time he could clearly see both him and Malfoy. _

"_Sorry," Harry heard himself say. _

_He stood there as a third party watching himself, which was incredibly weird. He wondered if this was a dream. He was still frozen in place and couldn't move or control anything, but it was different from the other memories that he had seen. _

_He realized that he and Malfoy were staring at one another for a pretty long time. He expected the self he was watching to get up to peer in the window, but he didn't. Instead, he watched as his other self tilted his head closer to Malfoy's. Harry stared, paralyzed, both emotionally and physically as his other self leaned down and kissed Malfoy directly on the lips. The stranger fact was that Malfoy responded to the kiss and wrapped his arms around Harry's head. Suddenly, his body felt hot, as if he was feeling the emotions of the dream Malfoy and Harry. He tried to wake up but he couldn't. _

_Malfoy groaned and moved his hand down Harry's back. Slowly, he lifted up Harry's shirt and caressed his skin. Harry could actually feel Malfoy's hand. His heart started pounding. He couldn't do anything but watch as their lips moved over one another's. _

_Wake up! Wake up!_

Harry gasped as he sat up in bed. He was covered in perspiration. His heart was beating a mile a minute. He stared around his dark room, calming his breath.

"What the hell was that?"

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**To Reviewers: **

_**Special thanks to Raeshi for taking the time to review! **_** Thank you, Raeshi. Yes, don't worry, I promise to finish this! I won't take so long next time in updating. I'm really glad that it feels believable to you and that you like it so far. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! **


	7. The Ministry Celebration

_**Luminescence**_

**PLEASE READ - Important Author's Note: ** This may be the last chapter for a while as I've noticed that many people are following and favoriting this story, but no one is reviewing. I'm not the type of author who cares how many reviews I have, but 1 or 2 reviews per chapter at least would be nice so that I know what you guys like, what you don't. Some sort of feedback is greatly appreciated. I'm not writing this story for me. I already know how this ends. I'm writing it to get feedback about my writing because it's good practice to apply to my own original work.

One thing I've always said to my reviewers on this site is that I don't like leaving stories unfinished so my goal is to finish every story that people want finished. I really want to finish this and it is fun to write, but without any response at all it seems just like I'm writing and posting this for myself. All my hard work feels like a waste because I have no idea if anyone likes it or not or what they think of the plot or where it's headed.

I ask that people please take just a few seconds to tell me anything, even one word or two. Since I'm writing it for you guys, it just doesn't seem worthwhile to put in all this effort and time working on it when I haven't gotten any feedback. I know that a lot of people are following this story (FF alerts me when someone follows). So this might be the last chapter for a while. I'll see how I feel.

**XXXXXXXX**

**Chapter 6: The Ministry Celebration **

Harry sat in bed just staring into the dark for several minutes. There was no way that he would've dreamed that. He was frozen in it just like during the memory he saw of Malfoy's. But did that mean…was it Malfoy's dream? No, it couldn't be. Even if it was, it probably was a nightmare he was having. Harry remembered he once dreamed a very frightful dream in which he joined Voldemort. This was during his first year after he had seen Voldemort's face for the first time and Voldemort had asked him to surrender. He must have been so afraid of what would have happened had he given in and not stood his ground. Or maybe it was Harry's own mind playing tricks on him.

For several long minutes Harry tried to get comfortable in bed. When he couldn't, he got up and went downstairs. He realized it was five in the morning so at least he had gotten some sleep. He must have been asleep for a while before the dream hit. He went down into the kitchen and pulled out a Butterbeer just to calm his racing heart a bit. After a few sips, Harry started thinking.

_I need to know more about this potion. I need to know if I'm seeing just memories or if I can see dreams too, and how I will know the difference. The Archives didn't have much on it. I wish there was a place, besides the restricted section at the Hogwarts library, where I could…_

Harry froze. A library! When he was giving Malfoy the tour of Grimmauld Place, he remembered seeing an extensive collection of books. Considering that Grimmauld Place was the home of generations of Slytherins, it was very possible that there was information about this potion. He ran up to the second floor to the room where there was a picture of a young Sirius with his family. He saw the bookcase in the corner of the room. He walked over to it past the beautifully crafted desk and saw that all the books were very ordinary. They were about basic wizard things, places mostly. There was such an array of subjects that Harry was suspicious. It almost seemed too ordinary like it was a cover for something else.

Stepping back, he examined the book shelf more closely. Even though the house was incredibly secure, the Black family obviously wouldn't leave dark magic just lying around. He searched for something that didn't seem to belong. Out of all the book subjects there was one that didn't seem to fit. It looked to be a book of magic except that Harry recognized the author. It was a book called _"Witch and Wizard"_ by James Patterson, which Harry knew to be a muggle author. On the outside it looked like some history book, but it definitely didn't belong. He grabbed a hold of it and pulled it out. Nothing happened. Curiously, Harry put it back in place and pushed it all the way back. Nothing happened. He then pulled it out again opened it. It seemed normal on the inside.

Frowning, he decided to try everything before moving on. He flipped the book upside down and then put it back on the shelf and pushed it all the way back. He heard a click and his heart skipped a beat. The bookshelf split into two and opened revealing a small entry way. Harry ducked inside. The room magically lit up as he entered. It was obviously some sort of timed light charm. There was a large cauldron in the center of the room. There was a huge cabinet full of ingredients. Harry wished he had known about it earlier before going out and buying all the ingredients he used for the potion. On the opposite side from the cabinet was a wall full of books. Harry couldn't believe that Sirius never told him about it, unless he didn't know.

"This is incredible," Harry whispered as he gazed at all the books.

He wasn't even sure where to start. He found a book on potions to his amazement. It was the size of three books combined, but at least it was specific to what he was looking for. The potions were all in categories so he looked under several until he came across it under illegal potions. He should have known. There was a list of all different kinds of illegal potions. That's when Harry saw it.

He quickly flipped to the page about the potion and read it silently.

_The Adstringo Potion is a fairly straight-forward potion to brew. Its complexity comes when knowing just how much of the Veritaserum to add. If not mixed properly in the correct combination between the fiery hot egg juice of the Ashwinder (melted – for maximum results) and the oil of a Mackled Malaclaw sea creature, with the personal ingredient of the target, you could wind up unable to tell a lie to the very person you bind yourself to. If mixed properly, this potion allows one to bind to another, and to become omnipotent with that one individual. While this potion hasn't been tested extensively, due to the fragile nature of its complex brewery, which caused many unfortunate side effects, it can have very good results. _

_The worst result is the case of Nicola Porter and Merianda Langley. The two witches who started out as acquaintances developed an unhealthy rivalry. When Merianda decided to brew this potion, she used too much Veritaserum and too many personal effects – namely two strands of Nicola's hair and an eyelash. They were forever bound and unable to dream. When they dreamed, no matter how far apart they were, they ended up together unable to escape until they both woke up. _

_Of course, this could have ended up even worse like the case of Ellion Winchester and Herek Falconaye, two wizards who both had the idea to brew the potion. Even though they did not brew it at the same time, the second that Herek took his potion, after Ellion had already taken his, again also using too many strands of each other's hair, they could not be within a hundred yards of each other without hearing each other's thoughts. Plus they also dreamed each other's dreams. _

_These unfortunate consequences are why this potion has been banned. Normally, if brewed properly, it stays in a person's system for 1 week, depending on the individual. Certain things can expand its lifespan, but it is usually temporary. The DNA of the target of the potion is required to have access to their individuality. It is much stronger than a Polyjuice potion in the sense that you are not just taking an outside form, or a look-alike. You are literally being bound to them, mind, body, and soul. _

Harry stopped reading for a second. He was nervous about the meaning of being bound to Malfoy in "mind, body and soul". He wasn't sure what it meant entirely, but he was just thankful he brewed the potion correctly so it was temporary.

_To be omnipotent with your target means to have access to their deepest darkest thoughts, which come in two forms: memories and dreams. _

Harry sat up in the plush chair he was reading from. He glanced at the small entry way of the hidden door just to make sure he didn't hear Malfoy. Then he continued.

_When the target falls into a light sleep but does not enter the REM cycle (intense dreaming cycle) of sleep and is instead in the __NREM__ (non-rapid eye movement) cycle, their __memories__ can be accessed. It is difficult to know when a person will or will not dream. The easiest way to access their memories is for them to go to bed earlier and with little or no alcohol in their system. Some memories are deeper to access, but if the person falls into the REM dream cycle, the dreams and memories could combine, making it difficult to discern the two. Memories can also be accessed if a person goes to sleep after taking a sleeping potion. The sleeping potion just puts their body into a state of rest, therefore not allowing their natural sleeping state to take over and making it less likely they will fall into the REM state. _

_To access __dreams__, which is in the __REM__ cycle, the easiest way is for them to go to sleep drunk, to put it bluntly. When they fall into a deep sleep, or pass out, you can more easily access the REM state or rather their deepest, darkest desires. Dreams, however, can be tricky to interpret depending on how literal the target's dreams are. The most important way to discern a dream is that in a dream, instead of seeing it from the target's eyes, you can move yourself into a third-party position so you actually see the person and not just through their eyes. It would be like watching a Quidditch match where you see all the players but no one can see you. _

_In a memory, however, you cannot do that because you cannot change the person's memory and how they remember it (unless of course you do dark magic and alter their memories). You will always see it through their eyes. This means you won't ever physically see your target, but you will see and feel what they experienced. _

Harry finally stopped reading. The book almost fell out of his lap. It had been a dream. Harry had been a third party watching the scene unlike the memory he had witnessed where he was seeing it from Malfoy's perspective and couldn't see Malfoy himself. That meant that Malfoy had dreamt about kissing him. Then again, the book said that dreams could be difficult to interpret depending on how literal a person's dreams were. Perhaps when Harry toppled over him, he thought Harry was going to kiss him because they were so close and that's why his dream changed what happened.

Shaking his head, Harry closed the book and put it back. Still, now he was able to understand how to access memories versus dreams. He needed more of Malfoy's memories if he was going to access information about the Archives. It had almost worked last time to focus on that when he fell asleep. The book also said that dreams are more easily accessed when someone is drunk. The other night when they went to sleep and he saw Malfoy's _dream_, the blond had had several butterbeers before bed during their dinner. At the Inn in Italy, when he had seen the _memory_ about Malfoy and his family being captured after the Battle of Hogwarts, Malfoy hadn't had much to drink, except the one butterbeer on the train hours before they got to the Inn. All Harry had to do to access his memories, according to the book, was to slip Malfoy a sleeping potion to make sure he didn't fall into the REM cycle. He wasn't sure how he was going to pull that off.

Sighing, he exited the room and went downstairs again to sit in the living room. He lay down on the couch, sipping his butterbeer, and tried to think of a plan. He wasn't even sure what time it was. Thankfully, since it was getting cold outside he wore his comfortable black sweatpants and a dark green T-shirt. He rested one arm up over his head and sipped his butterbeer with the other.

"Potter."

Harry blinked, realizing he had been staring up at the dark ceiling. The only light was coming from the fireplace, which was emitting a subtle warmth that was just enough to keep the room comfortable. He inclined his head to see Malfoy standing behind him. The blond came over to stand next to the couch. Malfoy was wearing fitted pants but the texture looked extremely comfortable. Harry flushed a little when he realized Malfoy wasn't wearing a shirt.

"What are you doing down here?"

"Er…I couldn't sleep," Harry said, unable to keep eye contact.

"How long have you been down here?" Malfoy asked.

"Just…since five."

Malfoy's eyebrows rose. "I'm surprised you don't resemble an Inferus."

Harry just shrugged. "I'm fine," he said, sitting up. "What time do you want to go?"

Malfoy crossed his arms over his chest. Harry could clearly see part of the dark mark etched on his arm. He tried not to stare.

"We can still plan on 11. It doesn't matter." Malfoy hesitated. "Are you going to be too tired to go?"

"No, I'm fine, really. I wouldn't be able to go to sleep anyway so there's no point in staying here. Honestly though I feel fine," Harry said. "So, where are we going to shop? Diagon Alley?"

Malfoy snorted. "No, Potter. Diagon Alley was fine when we were kids, but Florndale Way is far better. They have the best robes store that I know of anyway."

"Florndale Way? Where's that?"

"It's in Scotland deep within the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. The entrance is back in the oak woods so it's well-hidden."

Harry's eyes lit up. "Okay. Er, I'll go get dressed."

"You don't have to be in a hurry. I'm eating breakfast first," Malfoy said as he turned and headed in the direction of the kitchen.

"Er, right," Harry mumbled. He followed behind him.

Malfoy was already at the fridge when he entered. The blond turned and gazed at him.

"You want some fried occulmy eggs too?"

"Sure," Harry said.

He slowly sat down at the table. He watched Malfoy wave his wand at the eggs. They floated over to the stove where a pan was waiting. The eggs began to cook themselves and Malfoy sat down in the chair next to him. It wasn't directly next to him. Malfoy was seated in a corner seat and Harry was on the other side of the corner, but still it was close enough. Harry tried not to think about the dream. He wondered if Malfoy was thinking about it, or if he even remembered it. A few minutes later, the eggs were done and Harry conjured up some plates for them. They ate pretty much in silence, to Harry's relief. He finished off his butterbeer and thought about the potion. He would have to find time to go out and buy a sleeping potion. Of course, he and Malfoy were going shopping, but he would have to make an excuse to sneak away.

"I'm going to go take a shower and get dressed. It's a little early but if you want to leave after that I'll be ready," Malfoy said.

Harry nodded. "Sure."

Malfoy disappeared upstairs. Harry sighed and finished his breakfast. He didn't want to feel awkward around Malfoy. He just had to forget about that dream.

Almost an hour later, they were both dressed and ready. Harry wore dark jeans and a dark green long-sleeved shirt. It was a soft material and fitted nicely to his body. Malfoy wore black jeans and a silver-gray button-down, collared shirt that was very tight to his chest.

They took the train to Scotland where the national park was located. It was enormous and the most beautiful landscapes he had ever seen. They had a large body of water surrounded by mountains. The place they went to was through a meadow toward the woods. It was chilly out still so they both brought their jackets. Harry shivered. He couldn't wait until winter was completely over. They crossed a creek and then came to an open field. It looked just like any other field except way in the back there was a small hill that looked oddly out of place. When they approached it, Malfoy muttered a disillusion charm and the hill turned into a large fountain. Mafoy stepped into the lower part of the fountain. It had an enormous large circular bottom and in the very center higher up was a tall pillar. It had two large sculpted flowers on either side of the pillar. Higher up on the top of the pillar was a small sculpture of a witch and wizard standing back-to-back. The witch winked at him and Harry was stunned.

Malfoy smirked at him. "Get in, Potter."

Harry climbed in the bottom part of the fountain. Malfoy then turned one of flower knobs. Harry heard a clink. He turned the other one and all of a sudden the circular bottom of the fountain began to descend. It was just like an elevator. They went down underground at least a mile before it stopped. When they got off the platform rose back up. He knew that it was back to looking like a hill now.

They were walking down a dark passage. It was so dark they had to use their wands for light. They got to the end of the short, narrow passage and came to a brick wall. It was similar to the one in Diagon Alley only Malfoy had to tap a different pattern to make the bricks move apart. Once they did the sun shone brightly on them. They walked out into an entranceway with a sculpted tree arch with flowers charmed to blossom through it. Ahead of them was a very large town with various shops all around and lots of people bustling about. Nobody even noticed them. There were so many shops for miles that some of them extended far beyond his vision. It was crowded just like Diagon Alley. It was definitely much larger, just like Malfoy had said.

Harry gasped when he saw people riding brooms overhead. They seemed to be testing out the new brooms that were on sale at a broom shop. The only way Harry figured that out was because the brooms had a barely noticeable string tethering them to the shop so they could only fly out so far.

"This is amazing," Harry said as they walked down the street.

Malfoy snorted. "It would be to you."

Harry glanced sideways at him and noticed that Malfoy actually had a pleasant look on his face. Malfoy was staring out at the shops. Harry realized that hanging out with Malfoy actually wasn't half-bad. Maybe they were starting to become friends.

They walked a little ways before getting to the robe store. Malfoy was not joking. They were the most beautiful robes he had ever seen. There were lots of velvet ones, some that shimmered, some that were sparkling (like diamonds), some silk or satin, some with a mixture. All of them were gorgeous colors and flowed out elegantly at the bottom. The female robes flowed more dramatically at the bottom.

"Wow, there are so many," Harry said.

They both gazed around at the robes. Malfoy saw one that he liked. It was a beautiful pitch-black velvet robe with silver lining and an intricate silver design etched into the back. Instead of going to try it on, Malfoy stood there waiting for him.

"Er…I have no idea what to try on," Harry said.

Malfoy rolled his eyes. He then went around to a couple of areas before he pulled one out.

"Try this one."

He handed it to Harry who gazed at it. It was a forest-green velvet robe with a satin black lining on the outer parts. There were black intricate designs weaved at the bottom in the back of it, but otherwise it was a bit simpler than the one Malfoy got. Still, Harry liked it. He wasn't the type of person to go over-the-top anyway. He followed Malfoy toward the back where there were private dressing rooms as well as mirrors attached to the wall.

Malfoy approached a mirror and slipped his robe on. Harry had to admit, Malfoy looked like a model in the dark robe. The silver parts of the robe brought out his silver-gray eyes and the black was such a stark contrast to his pale skin and light eyes that it made them even more prominent. Harry felt rather self-conscious now.

"Come on, Potter, try it on," Malfoy said, gesturing.

"Er, I'll wait until you're done."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "The mirror will expand, you know."

Harry approached the mirror and it expanded. It was now as large as two mirrors in one. Feeling rather embarrassed, Harry slipped his robe on. To his surprise, he didn't look half bad. The robe definitely brought out his eyes as well. Without his glasses he definitely looked more attractive. Granted his hair was still messy but his bangs were straight and not curled out like they used to be. Harry noticed in his peripheral vision that Malfoy was staring at him in the reflection. He felt his cheeks heat up. He didn't know why he was feeling so embarrassed. Even if Malfoy had dreamed that dream, the blond didn't even like him as a friend. They were definitely getting along better as partners, but they weren't friends yet. Harry couldn't imagine that happening.

"So, are you going to get yours?" Harry asked, turning to him.

Malfoy shrugged and then glanced back at the mirror. "Yeah, I think it suits me."

Harry felt the urge to roll his eyes but thankfully didn't. He gazed back at his own reflection.

"Yeah, I like this one too."

"Yes, you look lovely dear."

Harry jumped back. He didn't even realize he had his wand in hand until Malfoy burst out laughing. The blond was laughing so hard he nearly lost his balance.

"Potter…you…you looked ridiculous when…." Malfoy couldn't even finish as he laughed harder. "It was…just the mirror."

Harry's eyes squinted as he examined the mirror.

"Sorry about that dear," a voice spoke.

Harry's eyes widened. "Oh, er, sorry," he said, putting his wand away. He glared at Malfoy. "It wasn't that funny."

"Are you kidding? It was way better than the dragon dung or the stupid grasshipper."

Harry burst into laughter. Malfoy straightened up and stared at him curiously.

"It's grass_hopper_, not grasshipper," Harry said, laughing again as he clutched his stomach.

"Whatever. It's a stupid muggle insect. What do I care?"

Harry just laughed harder at the expression on Malfoy's face.

"It's still not as funny as you nearly jumping ten feet in the air when that mirror spoke to you," Malfoy said, smirking. "Seriously, Potter, have you never seen a talking mirror."

"Just that phrase 'talking mirror' says it all, Malfoy."

"Yeah, if you're a muggle," Malfoy said. "It's perfectly common here. Children even know about it. And none of them would have jumped ten feet in the air."

"Shut-up."

"I think you both look fabulous. You should definitely get those robes," the mirror spoke up.

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "These mirrors just complement people to make them buy them, but considering these are the best robes around I'm going for it."

Harry nodded in agreement. They went up to buy their robes.

"Gentlemen, how are you today?" the wizard asked. He was a younger gentlemen, maybe ten years older than them, with glasses and hair with blue streaks to match his robe.

"Just this," Malfoy said, handing him his robe.

"Ah yes, one of our specialties," he said, grinning. With a wave of his wand the robe was packaged into a bag. Malfoy had to sign a Gringotts form giving the goblins permission to transfer money out of his vault to the company. "And for you, sir?"

"Just this, thanks," Harry said.

The man smiled at his politeness. "Of course. I'm very sorry the mirror frightened you. Are you muggle born?"

Malfoy snickered. Harry glared at him.

"Er, well, I'm half muggle actually," Harry said. "And it was no problem."

Malfoy finally composed himself. "Oh, come on, Potter, that was beyond – "

"POTTER! As in H-Harry Potter?" the wizard gapped.

Harry froze as did the other customers in the store.

"Er…"

"Whoops," Malfoy muttered.

"Great Merlin's beard, why didn't you say something, Mr. Potter? I am so honored for you to choose my store. Here, let me give you a discount."

Malfoy's mouth dropped open but he quickly closed it before the wizard saw.

"Er, thanks," Harry said. "That's really not necessary."

"Nonesense! You saved the world and all. That deserves a discount," the wizard grinned.

"Thanks," Harry said as the wizard wrapped it up nicely. "Er…," he said, hesitating as he glanced at Malfoy. "Would it be too late to give my friend a discount as well?"

Malfoy turned to him with wide eyes.

"Oh, not a problem, Mr. Potter!" he said, summoning the form Malfoy just signed. He changed the price by waving his wand and Malfoy went over to sign it. "What a nice friend you are," he said.

Harry smiled as he glanced at Malfoy. The blond smiled and unexpectedly put his arm halfway around Harry and patted his shoulder.  
>"Thanks, Harry."<p>

He blinked in surprise. They always called each other by their surnames. It sounded strange, but it wasn't bad.

"You two have a great day!"

"Thanks," Malfoy said, waving.

"Yeah, thanks! You too," Harry said, waving.

The wizard waved and several people stared at them as they left the store.

"That was such a great deal! These are so expensive, even though they're worth it. I forgot how useful it could be having you around."

"Wow. You're a great friend, Malfoy," Harry retorted sarcastically.

The blond grinned. "Hey, I've saved your life, remember? That counts for something."

"Yeah, and I've saved yours."

Malfoy shrugged. "All right. So we're even."

Harry just shook his head. "Where are we going next?"

"Anywhere. There's a great Quidditch store nearby."

An idea suddenly struck him. "Er, is there a potion store around here?"

"Yeah, a couple blocks down. Why? You need more eyesight potion?"

"Er, not a potion, just some ingredients."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "You're seriously brewing it at home."

"I've found a shortcut, you know, a substitution of sorts so that it's faster to brew and easier ingredients to work with."

"What? You were horrible in potions! How did you manage that?"

"It's my secret," Harry said, grinning.

Malfoy stared at him suspiciously. "Fine. There's one a couple blocks down."

They walked down the street and Harry was admiring all the people talking happily as they walked by. Thankfully no one noticed who he was. He was so grateful that the war was over. The wizard world was amazing without Voldemort and Death Eaters ruining it.

"Here it is," Malfoy said.

Harry turned to him and nodded. He followed the blond inside. The store was huge. There were shelves and shelves of various bottles and bags of ingredients. Harry picked up a few things he would need for his eye potion that he was getting short on. When Malfoy was busy looking at something, Harry snuck over to the pre-made potion section and grabbed a couple sleep potions. Then he went up to pay for them. Malfoy was still wandering around but when he saw Harry paying, he went over to stand by him. Harry's heart started beating faster. He couldn't let Malfoy see the potions.

"Will there be anything else?" the witch at the counter asked.

"Er, no, thanks," he said quickly. "Malfoy, er, did you see the dragon scales over there?"

Malfoy glanced over his shoulder only briefly and shrugged. "Yeah, what of them?" he asked as he walked over to the counter.

Harry's heart pounded. "Er, nothing, it's just –"

"Do you want the sleep potions separate from your ingredients?" the witch asked as she was bagging the items.

Harry's heart literally stopped. Malfoy turned to him. "You're getting sleep potions?"

Harry gazed at him and then quickly turned to the girl. "Er, you can put them all together, thanks."

"Sure thing," she said, smiling. "There you go."

"Thanks," Harry murmured as he took the bag.

They walked out and he felt Malfoy staring at him. His heart was beating a mile a minute and he hoped the blond couldn't see how nervous he was.

"Potter."

Harry swallowed and then turned to the blond. "Yeah?"

"You know that sleep potions aren't a solution, right?"

Harry blinked. "Er, what do you mean?"

"For insomnia. After a while your body will just get used to it. Even if it does knock you out like it's supposed to, you won't feel rested. Trust me."

"Oh, er, okay. I'll just use them for emergencies."

Malfoy nodded and then turned away. Harry exhaled in relief. He was grateful that Malfoy caught him on the couch that morning unable to sleep. It made for a perfect excuse for the potions.

"Where are we going now?" Harry asked.

Malfoy pushed his bangs back from his face. "There's a clothing store nearby that I like."

Harry nodded. "Okay."

"After that we can stop for lunch, unless you want to go now."

"That's okay. I'm not that hungry right now. We can go to the store first."

Malfoy glanced at him and nodded. They both made their way down a cobblestone street towards the store. Harry realized that the stones underneath their feet changed color as they walked. He was so busy looking down at his feet that he wasn't paying attention.

"Potter!" Malfoy exclaimed, grabbing his arm and yanking him out of the way. He nearly crashed into a lady with at least ten floating shopping bags around her.

"Sorry," Harry replied. He felt his face heat up. He glanced around but no one was staring at him.

Malfoy snorted. "Pay attention or next time I won't stop you flattening your face."

Harry glared at him. Their eyes locked for a split second. Harry could sense the blond's amusement. Despite it being cold out, the sun was shining brightly.

A few minutes later they walked into the store. There were several floors worth of clothes separated into male and female. Their clothes ranged from simple to elegant. Malfoy was already looking at a silky black shirt that had silver buttons down it made from dragon scales. Harry could tell because of the way they glistened. He looked around at the clothes. He came across a pair of black jeans with dark maroon red flames circling the bottom. He thought they were pretty cool so he grabbed a pair. The second he took it off the rack another one appeared. Harry also found a cobalt-blue shirt with a huge claw mark through it. Words appeared after a few seconds saying _I've survived a dragon attack! _

"Malfoy! This is perfect for you," Harry said.

The blond walked over to him and Harry handed it to him. Malfoy snorted. "Really, Potter?"

"Oh, come on! It's too perfect!" Harry exclaimed. "Just try it on at least."

Rolling his eyes, Malfoy shoved it into his growing pile and turned back around. Harry grinned. After a little while, Harry finally had a few clothes to try on. He followed Malfoy toward the back where there were private fitting rooms with mirrors. Harry tapped Malfoy's shoulder and the blond turned around.

"What?"

"Do these mirrors talk too?"

Malfoy smirked. "Yes, Potter. Most do. At least the ones in stores are charmed to. Obviously the mirror in people's houses don't really need to do that," he said. "Although some people like Pansy still had a talking mirror to tell them how beautiful they are each day," he added with sarcasm.

"Wow, that's...pretty sad actually."

Malfoy smirked. "Yes, it is."

They both got a room next door to one another. As Harry was changing, he could also hear Malfoy changing next to him. He took off his pants and shirt and slipped on the black pants with the flames. Then he slipped on dark maroon shirt to match. Instead of regular sleeves it had holes in it that went around the whole arm like open stripes. It didn't instantly adjust to fit his size like the pants. It was a little loose in the arms area so he touched it and it instantly tightened. Out of surprise, Harry's hands instinctively went up to the area it tightened and touched it again causing it to tighten very uncomfortably. He grabbed at it to try to loosen it only it tightened even further.

"Malfoy!" Harry hissed through a clenched jaw.

"What?" he said, sounding annoyed.

"Get in here!"

"What?! Potter, I'm not coming in there," he whispered.

"Malfoy! Get. In. Here."

He heard the blond sigh heavily before Malfoy pulled the curtain.

"What, Potter?"

"This is too tight and it keeps tightening," Harry said reaching for it.

"Don't pull on it! You'll only make it worse," Malfoy said.

Harry halted. "Then how do I make it loosen?"

Malfoy smirked. "All you have to do is tap it with your wand. You pull it with your hands to make it tighter and tap it with your wand to make it looser."

Harry tried to bend down but it was too tight to bend. "Er, could you get my wand?"

Malfoy sighed in annoyance and went over to his pants to get it. He handed it to him and Harry tapped on the shirt. As soon as it started to loosen he breathed a sigh of relief. He then turned toward the mirror.

"Ooo! I like that outfit a lot!" the mirror cooed.

Harry ignored it. "I guess it's not so bad once it's not cutting off my lungs."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah, great."

Harry turned to him as the blond turned around to leave. "Are you getting that?" Harry asked, gesturing to the black silk shirt with the silver dragon scale buttons that gleamed. They weren't sparkly, but the way the colors of the scales molded together on the buttons reminded him of the mineral mica, which was very beautiful.

Malfoy leaned up against the side of doorway. "I'm thinking about it," he said shrugging. "What about you?"

Harry glanced down at his outfit. The pants were very comfortable and fit his body very well. The top was unique. It was different than anything he had in his closet. It was tight around his arms where there were the cutouts in the sleeves, making it look edgy. And it had some cutouts on the bottom so it showed little bits of his stomach here and there. All in all, it was different but he liked it.

"I think I'm going to get it."

Malfoy examined his body. Harry felt his face heat up.

"Yeah, it's fine," Malfoy said. "I never figured you for these kinds of clothes. You always wear plain clothes."

Harry glared at him. "Well I didn't care much about my appearance when I was fighting Vold—the Dark Lord, Malfoy."

The blond shrugged again. "What's that?"

Harry glanced down at the other shirt he had brought in to try on. It was another interesting shirt in that it was metallic so it was very dressy. It was a dark forest green too. Ever since Malfoy had picked out that robe that matched his eyes, he started keeping an eye out for similar colors. It was a T-shirt but it had a cool crisscross pattern in the back in black.

"I couldn't see you in something like that," Malfoy smirked. "That seems too dressy for you."

Harry clenched his jaw. Without thinking, he slowly pulled the other shirt up over his head and threw it aside. Malfoy glanced at his bare chest but Harry wasn't paying attention. He picked up the other shirt and slid it on. It was surprisingly a very soft material, like the same material that his invisibility cloak was made out of. Harry then stood in front of Malfoy who was staring at him.

"Well?" Harry asked.

The blond finally crossed his arms and stared at him. His eyes roved up and down making Harry slightly uncomfortable. Finally, the blond tilted his head and then shrugged. "Not bad."

"You look downright hot!" the mirror chimed in.

Harry glanced at it. "Er…thanks," he muttered.

Glancing back at the blond, he saw Malfoy gazing at him.

"What?"

"Nothing. I just never thought you were the type who liked to dress up."

"Really? Well, I also picked up these," Harry said, picking up a pair of tightly fitted shiny black pants that had gold flames trickling down the sides. The shiny material was very similar to a combination of leather and the soft material of the shirt he was wearing, a light feathery kind.

"Are those Demiguise leather pants? This I have to see," Malfoy said, smiling. He stepped inside the room so that he could close the curtain properly.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Harry took off the black plants leaving him clad in his short gray boxers. He picked up the pants and slid into them marveling at how smooth and soft the material was. The second he buttoned it, it hugged his entirely body just right. It wasn't uncomfortable to move. In fact, it felt like he wasn't wearing anything at all. It was so light and soft. In the mirror, he definitely thought he looked like someone else. He had no glasses on and with the forest green fancy shirt his eyes shone brightly. The tight pants with the golden flames on the sides definitely made him look edgy, kind of like a bad-boy, only less extreme.

"This is so comfortable," Harry said.

He glanced at Malfoy who stared at the pants and then his eyes locked with his. "It is made out of Demiguise hair," he said. "I have a pair too although I've been thinking about buying a new pair. The one I have is getting old."

"I am definitely getting these."

"You should wear it to the party," Malfoy said, smirking.

"Not a chance, Malfoy," Harry said. "It's a formal event."

"You said it was _semi_-formal," Malfoy retorted with a smirk.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I still want to make a good impression."

"Why? You said you don't want to work for them." Malfoy asked, crossing his arms again.

"True, but I also want them to take me seriously. I don't want them to think that now that the war is over that I'm just a kid who's floundering around in life."

"Floundering?" Malfoy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry sighed. "You know what I mean. Anyway, I just think it's important for them to view me as on their level."

"Potter, considering that you defeated the bloody Dark Lord, I'm pretty sure that's not going to be a problem."

Turning, Harry glanced at him with wide eyes. His look of surprise must've clued Malfoy in because the blond then cleared his throat.

"I'm going back to my dressing room now so don't get yourself into any more life-or-death situations with your clothes," he drawled with amusement.

"Shut-up," Harry muttered.

Malfoy just smirked and disappeared behind the curtain. Harry stared for a minute. Malfoy had just given him a compliment. Granted, it was a fact that Harry killed Voldemort. Still, to hear Malfoy say something positive about him was truly alarming. At the same time, he was actually happy that he and Malfoy were getting along. Hanging out with Malfoy was certainly different from hanging out with Ron and Hermione. Malfoy was fun to hang out with regardless, at least when he wasn't having an attitude problem.

Exhaling deeply, Harry glanced over at his potion purchase which was floating nearby. After he tried on his clothes, he decided to purchase them all, even the shirt that nearly suffocated him. Malfoy also bought most of what he tried on including the silver silk shirt which Harry thought looked really nice on him.

"I'm starving," Malfoy said.

Harry nodded in agreement.

"I know a really great restaurant. They have the best brewed butterbeer ever."

Harry glanced at him. "It's really that different from the bottled butterbeer we get?"

"Definitely. For one thing, it's warm. If we just heated ours up it probably wouldn't taste as good, but this one is so smooth it floats down your throat like a soft cream. It has just enough sweetness but not too much. A lot of people come here specifically to get butterbeer from them. They also have amazing roasted Horklump."

Harry smiled in response. The place that they went to was a beautiful cabin. It had a sign outside that read Mykonos Café and Brewery. Thankfully the lunch rush was over so it wasn't very crowded in there. They sat at a table in back and a menu appeared as soon as they sat down. Harry tapped his wand on a lunch special. He examined the brewed butterbeers and decided on the butterscotch one. When they were done ordering the menu floated away. Their drinks appeared almost instantaneously.

Harry took a sip. It was the perfect temperature and slid down his throat just as Malfoy described. The sweet butterscotch aftertaste was also just enough of a hint of sweetness.

"Wow. That's really good."

Malfoy grinned. "Told you, Potter."

The blond took a sip of his drink and sighed contently.

"So, Malfoy," Harry said as the blond's gaze locked with his, "why did you decide to join this company? I never pictured you as a Herbology person."

"Yeah, well, I never pictured you for one either, Potter. So why did you join?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "I asked first. I'll tell you my reason after you tell me yours."

Malfoy snorted. "Fine. I applied to five different jobs and they were the second to respond. They paid more money than the first job so I decided to try it out."

"How long have you been there?" Harry asked, taking another sip.

Shrugging, Malfoy set his drink down. "I guess a month maybe."

"So, have you been doing all the assignments yourself?"

"You mean before you butted in?" Malfoy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry glared. "Yes. And for the record I think it's helpful to have a partner."

"Actually, when I first joined I was doing the inside work."

"You were doing the same job as Cyprian?" Harry asked, wide-eyed.

"Pretty much, although I didn't see him at all, which is why I didn't know who he was. I was working mostly on organizing the data and everything into the new book. I also helped out other researchers there doing odd jobs, but it was just menial and boring. So about a couple weeks before you came into the picture I asked Dimitri if I could work outside in the field. He gave me a test assignment, which of course he didn't feel the need to give you," he drawled.

Harry shrugged. "So what was the test assignment?"

"Just to find a red Flutterby bush. The bush was so bloody tiny I almost missed it. It took me several days to track down, but when I did he accepted me. Apparently they have enough research on the more common one which is blue and white, but the red ones they don't have much on."

Harry nodded. "Do you still like the field work better than the research?"

"Yeah. It pays better anyway, but mostly I hate being cooped up."

"Me too," Harry agreed.

Malfoy took a sip and then leaned his arms on the table. "It's your turn, Potter."

"Oh, right. Well, honestly, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I knew I had a job offer to become an Auror but that just – it didn't sound appealing. I was talking with Ron and Hermione about it and of course Hermione suggested researching what I want to do, which sounded horribly boring. Not to mention I didn't know where to start. Then when Ron mentioned that Neville worked for a pretty big Herbology company and he had helped Dean get a job, he suggested I contact Neville."

"I see. That's how you got in so quickly. Neville was always a Herbology geek and he got you the job."

"Not the job. He got me an interview with Dimitri. He did, however, highly recommend me to Dimitri."

"Let me guess. You were hired on the spot," Malfoy drawled.

"Er…yeah."

"Not surprising," Malfoy said.

Harry raised an eyebrow and Malfoy just stared at him. To Harry's relief the food came and they were pretty much preoccupied with eating. Harry noticed some people were staring at them but he ignored it. They were sitting right by a window which had a beautiful view of the street and shops.

"So how long do we have to stay at this party tomorrow?"

Harry turned away from the window and gazed at Malfoy, who was staring at him thoughtfully.

"Not sure. I know it starts after dinner at 7 so hopefully not too long."

Malfoy shrugged. He finished eating and Harry stared at him. The blond wasn't paying attention. He was grateful to Malfoy that he was accompanying him to something that they were both sure would be incredibly boring.

"Do you plan on staying with this company?" Harry asked.

"Why? Scared to be doing the assignments yourself, Potter?"

Harry gave him an annoyed look. "It's just a simple question, Malfoy."

"Then I don't know, Potter. I can't predict the future like you."

Harry cocked his head curiously. "I can't predict the future like a seer, you know. I'm just wondering if you have any other dreams that you want to do."

"Like what?"

"Well, you used to love Quidditch."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah, do you know how hard it is to get onto a professional Quidditch team. They look at everything from your grades, to your Quidditch experience and even your history and background."

"Oh," Harry said, realizing that being a former Death Eater would surely disqualify him. "Well, anyway, this place is nice. I like it better than Diagon Alley."

"Of course, it's way classier."

Harry nodded. They fell into a comfortable silence. Malfoy then ordered some of the brewed butterbeer to go.

They headed back to the house and got there by early evening. When Malfoy went up to take a shower, Harry slipped into the kitchen and took out one of the brewed butterbeers. He then uncorked the vial of sleeping potion and poured it in. He waited for Malfoy to come back down clad in his comfortable black pants and a T-shirt.

"You want a butterbeer?" Harry asked.

"I don't know," Malfoy said, shrugging. He lay down on the couch, propping his legs up.

"You bought a dozen of them. I'm sure you can afford to drink one," Harry said, shaking his head. He hoped Malfoy couldn't see how nervous he was.

Malfoy gazed over at him and then smirked. "You just want to have one yourself."

Harry opened his mouth and then closed it. He shrugged. "Maybe. I have my own butterbeer if you don't want to share."

Snorting, Malfoy raised a hand to rest over his head. "Whatever. Fine."

Harry went into the kitchen and exhaled deeply. He grabbed the butterbeer that had the sleeping potion and a fresh one. He then went back and handed Malfoy the butterbeer. In the containers that they were packaged in, it kept them hot so they didn't even need to be refrigerated. Malfoy uncorked his and took a sip. Harry lay down on the other couch, taking a sip of his, all the while watching to see Malfoy's reaction.

"Potter."

"Er, yeah," Harry responded quickly. He inwardly cursed at his nervous reaction.

"I was thinking," Malfoy said, hesitating. "Showing up at the Ministry tomorrow with a Dark Mark is unwise."

Harry turned his head toward him. "You want me to remove it?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Just in case. I don't want to be interrogated or anything. Of course most of them already know I was a Death Eater, but there will probably be some new Aurors and I don't need them on my ass."

"Oh, right."

Harry got up from his spot on the couch and put his butterbeer on the floor. He went upstairs to get his wand and then came back down. Malfoy was taking another swig of butterbeer as he approached with his wand. Malfoy sat up and bent his legs so Harry could sit down on the couch. They locked eyes for a minute and Malfoy turned his arm so the Dark Mark was showing.

"You sure you know what you're doing?"

"Worst case scenario it just won't work," Harry said, reaching out a hand to wrap around Malfoy's wrist. He pulled the blond's hand closer and then scooted closer to him. Being in Voldemort's mind at times was rather helpful. Voldemort knew how to remove it and so did Harry. There were a lot of things he saw in Voldemort's mind, some of which he wished he could forget. He had told Malfoy that if Voldemort had been alive he would need to know the spell. That was true and he didn't know the exact spell to remove it, but he did know some things. For one, he knew from Voldemort that if he died the spell to hold it there permanently would become moot, so he didn't need the spell. Also, he knew how to make the Dark Mark react.

Harry placed his thumb on the serpent's head. Then slowly he rotated his thumb. As he did so the serpent began to turn around. It slithered out of the skull's mouth. Malfoy watched in awe. Once the serpent was out of the skull Harry murmured the vanishing charm, making sure to be careful how he pronounced it so Malfoy's arm wouldn't disappear in the process. Gradually the skull began to fade until it was a simple red mark. However, the serpent was still there, hissing. Malfoy clenched his jaw in pain and reached up his other hand to place under his elbow.

"Sorry, it's almost over," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded, glancing at him before looking back down at the snake.

"_Obey me_," Harry hissed in parseltongue.

The serpent's eyes bore into his own. _"You are not my master!"_ it hissed.

"_Obey me!_" Harry hissed again. "_Disappear and never come back!_"

The serpent pulled its head back, hissing, as if resisting Harry's command.

"_You must obey parseltongue. Now disappear and never return!_" Harry hissed.

The snake closed its jaw, glaring at him, before it turned around. It began to coil up. The second it rested its head down it vanished. All that was left was a red mark where the skull had been.

"There," Harry said, releasing his arm. "The red mark should fade in a day or two."

Malfoy took his arm back, gazing at it in astonishment. He then nodded. "Thanks."

Harry gazed at him and Malfoy locked eyes with him. For a second they just stared silently until Malfoy leaned back against the couch and picked up his butterbeer. Harry nodded to him finally and then went back to his couch.

"So, if you hadn't been able to speak parseltongue?" Malfoy asked after a minute.

Harry sighed. "Then only Voldemort would've been able to undo it."

Malfoy's eyes widened slightly and he nodded. Harry saw a flash of gratitude in his expression. The blond took another gulp of his butterbeer. Harry watched him for a second until Malfoy locked eyes with him. Harry smiled slightly and looked away. He wasn't sure how long it would take before the potion took effect.

"Maybe we should get to bed early," he said. He glanced at Malfoy and sat up straight when he saw the blond had his eyes shut with his mouth slightly parted. He was still holding his butterbeer but it was tipping so some was spilling out. Harry quickly rushed over and took the butterbeer from his hand.

"Oh great," he muttered.

He wrapped his arms around Malfoy's torso and tried to lift him.

"Gosh, you're a lot heavier than you look," Harry said, grunting.

He finally gave up. He turned to leave and then glanced back at Malfoy. He wasn't sure how much Malfoy would remember, but he figured Malfoy wouldn't be as comfortable on the couch. He murmured a spell and levitated him up the stairs all the way to his bedroom. He had to set Malfoy down on the floor in order to pull back the covers but then he levitated him into the bed. Harry tucked his wand away and then grabbed at the covers. He slowly pulled them over Malfoy's body. The blond turned in his sleep. His bangs fell over his face. Harry realized his face was flushing but he wasn't sure why. He probably had too much butterbeer.

Heading back into his room, Harry decided the fastest way to fall asleep and see Malfoy's memory was to drink the rest of the butterbeer with the sleeping potion in it. He gulped it down and didn't even remember hitting the pillows.

_He could see the interior of Malfoy Manor as they appeared in the main entrance. Narcissa had a black bracelet around her wrist. _

"_I can't believe they just took your father to Azkaban," Narcissa said, dabbing at her eyes. "Now. I'm going to tell you where the emergency money is hidden in the house. You know we can't use Gringotts without the Ministry watching our every move. Once you get the money, I will tell you who needs to be bribed to help out your father."_

_He could feel a surge of anger and fear. _

"_Mother, I can't! They just took my wand away for several months. If I do anything, they will take my wand away for good."_

"_This is your father we're talking about, Draco! You'll do as you're told!" she snapped. _

"_NO!"_

_Narcissa turned and stared at him with wide eyes. "What did you say?"_

"_I said no! I'm sick and tired of living this way in the lies and the fear of getting caught or captured or going to Azkaban! I want to do something meaningful with my life!"_

"_You do have meaning! You have more meaning than the Minister himself! We made a solemn oath with the Greengrass family long ago to always remain together. They are the last remaining pureblood family. They're still hiding in Russia right now and I know they would help us out if need be. You need to stop being a child and being afraid of everything!" she said, sticking her nose up in the air. _

"_That's not fair! I didn't even get a say in it!" _

"_Life isn't fair, Draco! You have a duty to your family and heritage."_

"_What, like you?!" he snapped. "Are you telling me you didn't mind someone planning out your whole life for you? What about freedom?"_

"_Freedom?" Narcissa asked shocked. "If I had freedom, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. You will understand when you accept –"_

"_NO! I'm not accepting anything!" Malfoy screamed as tears welled up in his eyes. "You're my mother! Don't you care about what I want? Or what makes me happy?"_

"_You're acting like a child!"_

_Malfoy stared at her in shock. "I thought you loved me. I thought that you told Severus to protect me because you loved me."  
>"Yes, Draco! I'm your mother! It's my duty to protect you and you are the only heir to this family!"<em>

_The feeling of betrayal was so strong even as Malfoy backed away. "You don't even care about me."_

"_It isn't just about you! We are a family! We stick together, which means loyalty!" Narcissa exclaimed. Her lip trembled but she didn't cry. "I will tell you one more time to listen to me."_

"_No," Draco said. His hands were clenched into fists and trembling. "I'm sick and tired of listening to you and father! If I had never listened to you in the first place, if I had never joined the Dark Lord's ranks, I –"_

_Narcissa slapped him hard across the face and Malfoy stumbled backward. _

"_Don't you dare! Our families have always stood for being pureblood. That's what makes us special! And your father has done so much for this family! If you don't do as he asks, he will be stuck in Azkaban! Is that what you want?!"_

_Malfoy's lip trembled but he bit down and stared at the floor. "Even if I wanted to do this for father if I get caught doing something illegal, I'll never get my wand back! I'll never be able to have a normal life!"_

"_It isn't all about you!" Narcissa hissed. "What about your father? What about freeing him?"_

"_I've done enough for him! I did horrible things to people and cheated my way throughout school just to best Potter or get certain people on my side so that father would have some influence over their parents. Even though I listened to him nothing worked anyway! He was wrong about the Dark Lord's power! He was wrong about everything! I've wasted my whole life listening to you both and letting you force me to do things! You forced me to join his ranks! Father told me that he personally told the Dark Lord that I would be the perfect person to go undercover at Hogwarts to kill Dumbledore and capture Potter. You made him give me an impossible mission that I failed!"_

"_That's why I had Snape do the unbreakable bond, Draco! I protected you!"_

"_You only protected me so that I could live and be your heir! Because I'm your only child! So that you could control the rest of my life without you even caring what I want to do!"_

"_And what's that? Waste your time flying on a broom for a profession? Or screwing around with half-bloods?! If I find out that you haven't saved yourself for marriage, you will be sorry!" She snapped. _

"_You have no control over my sex life!" Malfoy snapped back. His body was trembling with both fear and rage. "You don't have control over anything anymore!"_

"_Don't you dare speak to me that way! You are the Malfoy heir and it is your duty – "_

"_Then I don't want to be the heir anymore!" Malfoy screamed. _

_He inhaled deeply as Narcissa's eyes widened in shock. Her lip trembled again but this time she glared at him. _

"_If you won't help you father or stay loyal to this family, then you are no son of mine! You won't get your inheritance until you finally accept and understand your duties! But you know very well that I'm not giving you a choice. You will do what I ask of you, and if you continue to fight me, I'll make sure you're miserable. If you accept your duties, you can have a wonderful life! It's your choice! Either way you'll do as you're told! I'm going to be escorted to Gringotts to relieve you of your inheritance. When you're ready to stop fighting me about trivial things, you can have it back. Until then leave!"_

_Malfoy's body tensed at the ferocity in her voice. _

"_GET OUT!" she screamed. _

_Malfoy jumped back and then wheeled around and ran for the door. He slammed it behind him. _

Harry jolted up in bed. Putting a hand to his head, he saw the flashes of the memories. In his haste to get to sleep he forgot to concentrate on the Archive room. Or maybe his curiosity of why Malfoy wasn't living at the Malfoy Manor took over. Either way he now knew why Malfoy had left. He had gotten into a big fight with his mother, just after getting into a fight with his father at the Ministry. His parents were obviously trying to control every aspect of his life and Malfoy didn't want that anymore. Harry felt bad for him. Malfoy may have had a family, but they weren't a good one. The blond probably felt so all alone. He had no family, no money or inheritance, and no friends. That's why he took the job. Harry wondered how long ago that fight had happened. He figured since Malfoy was still living on his own that he probably hadn't made up with his mother. When Narcissa had asked Harry if Malfoy was okay the night that Voldemort hit him with the killing curse again, he thought she really sincerely cared about him. He had actually felt sympathy for her and even Lucius. It wasn't what he thought. Malfoy was all they had of their blood and that's all they cared about.

Sighing, Harry got up to take a shower. Due to drugging Malfoy the previous night he hadn't had time for a shower. The hot water felt good on his skin as he stood there in the shower. He felt so guilty for prying into Malfoy's head, especially since the blond was actually being nice to him.

Harry wasn't sure how long he was in the shower, but when he got out an owl he didn't recognize was sitting on his bed with a letter attached.

"Oh, er, hi," Harry said awkwardly as he stood there with a towel wrapped around his waist.

The owl hooted, cocked his head, and then stuck out his leg. Harry scrimmaged around for some coins and put it in the owl's little sack on his other leg.

"Thanks," Harry said.

The owl just hooted and took off. He opened the letter.

_Harry,_

_ Sorry I had to use a different owl. I'm still in Romania but I'm coming back in 3 days. We need to get together and catch up. I want to tell you all about my trip! I hope the job is still going well. See you soon!_

_ ~Ron_

Harry stared down at the letter and swallowed uncomfortably. He wanted to see his best friend, but at the same time he didn't want to tell him about Malfoy. At least not yet. He knew Ron would blow a fuse. Everything was going okay with Malfoy and he didn't want it to blow up in his face. Plus, Harry still hadn't figured out the reason Malfoy was in the Archives. He would wait to tell him. Thankfully Ron was coming after the Ministry Celebration. Harry got dressed into his dark jeans and decided to wear the new fancy green top he got. It would match with the new robe.

He went downstairs to make some breakfast. Malfoy didn't come down at all. A part of him worried that maybe Malfoy changed his mind about going to the Ministry Celebration. Sighing, he went upstairs to clean his room. It was the only thing he could think to do with the time he had. While he was cleaning his room, Snape's potion book fell. He bent down to pick it up and when he turned it over, it was on the last page. Harry had never flipped to the back of the book before but he saw handwritten notes on the other side of the back cover. It was for a potion called _"Severus' Secret"._

Harry's excitement grew. This must have been the potion that Snape gave Harry just before he died. The one that stored all the memories and feelings he hid from Voldemort. Unfortunately, it looked complicated. There were a lot of ingredients and specific direction for almost all of them. Not to mention it took a week to brew and cool. Still, he was determined. If he could learn it then Snape's brilliant potion wouldn't end with him. The Order could definitely use it if another war ever came.

Harry decided to go out and get all the potion ingredients so he could start getting prepared. When he got back home Malfoy wasn't in the living room or kitchen. Harry was tempted to go knock on his door. Instead he decided to start on the potion since it would take a week to brew. That was if he did it right the first time.

Harry stirred in the first few ingredients carefully just as instructed. It took an hour and then he had to let it simmer for 40 minutes. While it was simmering, Harry took a risk and went upstairs to Malfoy's room. He knocked softly.

"Malfoy?"

Just as he suspected the blond didn't reply. Carefully, he entered and looked around the room. It was surprisingly neat except for a couple pair of jeans thrown across the desk chair. Harry saw the trunk that Malfoy had brought with him and he went over to it. It was locked with a password. Harry's eyes narrowed. Obviously Malfoy had something to hide.

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck rose. Harry jumped up. He silently cursed and then looked around the room. He opened the bureau and to his relief it was empty. Malfoy was most likely using his trunk for his clothes and not the antique bureau. Harry ducked inside and then murmured a spell to make a window on the inside so he could see out.

The door opened and Malfoy appeared. He had a bag in his hand and the logo was familiar to him. Harry's heart nearly stopped. It was the logo of Borgin & Burkes – the dark arts store that Harry had accidentally stumbled into once where he saw Malfoy and his father. So Malfoy had gone there to buy ingredients. The only reason he would need ingredients from there was for something rare and most likely very illegal. Malfoy took off his robe and then went over to the desk. He took out bottles of ingredients. Harry moved the window with his wand so he could see better. He wasn't sure exactly what they were and whether they were potion ingredients or just illegal potions themselves.

"Damnit, I hope I got enough of this stuff," Malfoy muttered. He scooped them up and then his eyes strayed toward the bureau. Harry's throat constricted. The blond then turned his attention to his trunk. "Catalonian Fireball," he said.

The trunk opened. Harry's heart skipped a beat. He knew the password. He had heard that name before; it was some breed of dragon. He could ask Ron later. Not that it mattered. He now could get into the trunk. If Malfoy caught him, he would never let him live to see what was inside.

Malfoy placed the bottles carefully in the trunk and locked it back up. Sighing, Malfoy then lifted his shirt up over his head. Harry's eyes widened. Malfoy was stripping, which meant hopefully he would go into the bathroom to take a shower. The blond's bare chest was glimmering as if he had been sweating. Then he eased off his jeans and kicked them aside. Harry's face felt hot. He felt wrong for spying on him now. He thought about turning away but he was afraid he would miss something important, such as if Malfoy started walking over to him. To his relief, however, Malfoy walked into the bathroom without taking off his boxers.

Once Harry heard the door shut he slipped out of the bureau. He hesitated in front of Malfoy's trunk. It would only take a second to look, but it was risky. Bending down, Harry placed his wand at the trunk. The bathroom door opened and Harry ran for his life. He bolted toward the door and opened it. He knew he wouldn't have time to shut it all the way without making a sound. He quickly knocked on the door and held it open a crack.

"Hello? Malfoy?" he called out weakly.

"Yeah, what, Potter?"

Slowly, he opened the door wider. He saw Malfoy standing there clad in only a towel.

"Oh, sorry," Harry said, glancing away briefly.

Malfoy snorted. "What do you want?"

Harry instinctively turned back toward him but made sure to keep his eyes on his face. "Er, I was just wondering if you had lunch yet. I was going to make something and, er, if you wanted I could make something for you too."

"Sure, why not," Malfoy said shrugging.

"Okay," Harry said awkwardly and shut the door.

He exhaled deeply. He went down to the kitchen. His heart was still pounding. That had been too close. He knew the password but he wasn't sure when he'd have a good opportunity to go snooping through Malfoy's trunk.

Once in the kitchen Harry prepared an omelet out of Occulmy eggs for them both which included green and red peppers, cheese and some spinach. It was simple but filling. When Malfoy got down to the kitchen he was wearing his dark jeans and his new silky black shirt with the silver dragon-scale buttons.

"Smells good, Potter," he said, coming to stand by him and watch him cook. "Why aren't you using your wand?"

Harry shrugged. "I just decided not to be lazy and do it the old-fashioned way."

Malfoy grinned. He leaned up against the counter, supporting himself with both hands on either side. He was facing Harry. "You mean the muggle way."

Being this close Harry could smell the subtle cologne he was wearing. Harry gazed at him. He didn't want to admit that Malfoy looked really attractive in his new shirt. It made him feel self-conscious.

"Fine. The muggle way. I see you're wearing your new shirt," Harry said gesturing.

Malfoy just smirked. "You going to wear your charmed leather pants?"

"Again, no. I'm going to wear my new green top and the new black jeans I bought. I'd rather not cause any more attention at the Ministry than is possible."

Malfoy snorted. "Good luck with that."

Harry gave him an annoyed look. "Sit down or I'm eating this all myself."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "I hardly think you could eat that all," he said. His eyes then traveled down Harry's chest.

Harry felt his face heat up. "What?" he asked.

Malfoy gestured toward his stomach. "You'd never be able to fit all that in your stomach."

Harry glanced down briefly toward his stomach and then back up at Malfoy. "First of all, I'm not as skinny as I used to be. Second of all, you've never been to the Weasleys for Christmas."

"Thank Merlin for that," Malfoy retorted.

Harry ignored the comment. "Mrs. Weasley basically stuffs us all like a turkey. We usually have at least three helpings. My stomach always feels like it's going to burst when I leave there."

Malfoy gazed at his stomach again. He crossed his arms while still leaning against the counter right next to him. "Well, you're not as skinny but you're still slim."

"The only reason I'm still lean is because of all that Quidditch practice," Harry said. "And I can guarantee you that I can eat this all myself. So stop annoying me."

Snorting, Malfoy finally walked away and into the living room. Harry breathed out, grateful that Malfoy hadn't suspected anything when Harry had been at his bedroom door. The omelets were finally done and Harry levitated them onto a plate. Then he levitated the plates behind him as he walked out into the living room. He veered Malfoy's plate toward him as the blond sat on the couch drinking the cold nettle juice Harry had seen him drink before. The blond took the plate that was levitating in front of him. Harry sat down on the other couch with his plate.

"This is good, Potter. I didn't realize you could cook."

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, it's something I picked up."

They ate pretty much in silence. Harry was deep in thought. He realized that they had both gotten into the habit of eating together, which was surprising to him. He would've thought Malfoy would avoid him as much as possible.

After they ate, Malfoy went back upstairs to his room and Harry went up to his. He responded to Ron's owl finally, telling him they should meet for lunch when he gets back. So long as they met far away while Harry wasn't on assignment, it would hopefully be easy to avoid Malfoy. Sighing, Harry went back to his potion, grateful that he timed the simmering to stop after 40 minutes. He then took aconite and slowly ground it up in a clockwise motion. He had to go very slow to make sure he did it right. He dumped it in and the potion sizzled. Now he just had to let it cool for a couple days and then he'd be able to finish it. Hopefully, it would be done correctly the first time.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_*The Ministry Celebration*_

A few hours later Harry finally started getting ready. He put on his new outfit and then slipped the new velvet emerald robe over him. He turned in the mirror admiring the elegant pattern weaved into the back.

"Potter, you ready?" he heard Malfoy's voice outside his door.

"Er, yeah, just give me a minute," Harry responded.

The blond didn't respond but Harry figured he heard him. He grabbed some charmed gel and rubbed it in his hair so that his bangs fell perfectly over his forehead just above his eyes. The rest of his hair was thick but was slicked so it wouldn't stick up at all. It was amazing what a little gel could do. Harry smiled, pleased that he actually felt he looked very handsome. He wanted to make a good impression.

Malfoy was waiting downstairs and he turned when Harry came into the room. The blond gazed at his outfit.

"I chose well."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I'll take that as a compliment," he said, eyeing Malfoy's outfit.

The blond had slipped on his elegant velvet black robe with the silver lining and silver pattern weaved in the back over the new outfit he had been in earlier. The blond also had done something with his hair since his long blond bangs were flowing nicely on either side of his face.

"Let's get this over with," Malfoy said.

Harry nodded. "Er, thanks again for coming with me."

Malfoy gazed at him and then smirked. "I guess you owe me one."

Harry raised an eyebrow but didn't dispute it. It was a pretty big favor Malfoy was doing for him.

The two of them left the house and flew to the Ministry building. When they entered through the front entrance they went up to the elevator. The celebration was being held in the Atrium on the 8th floor. This was the place where there were fireplaces up and down the long hallway for traveling. The elevator stopped and they both exchanged glances with one another. When they stepped out no one was there. They walked down the long hallway. They approached the main area where the Fountain of Magical Brethren was. There was a sign pointing toward the golden gates.

Glancing at one another again, they both walked toward the towering golden gates. Instantly when Harry knocked they opened. The second that they opened they were greeted by hundreds of wizards and witches who were all dressed in their finest robes. Most of them were in the midst of conversation so thankfully only a few people saw them enter. Then more heads turned and suddenly clapping was echoing around the room.

Minister Shaklebolt was beaming. Harry saw several familiar faces, including that of Professor Slughorn who was standing by the wayside. Harry smiled and nodded politely. He turned to see Malfoy walking a few steps behind him. The blond obviously felt insecure there. Malfoy locked eyes with him and Harry gave him a reassuring smile.

"Welcome, Harry," Kingsley said, walking up to him. Instead of just a shake of the hand he then pulled Harry into a one-armed hug. Harry thankfully was too stunned to let his emotions take control. It reminded him of how Sirius used to hug him.

"Thank you, Minister," Harry said, formally.

"You don't have to be formal, Harry," Kingsley said, smiling. "You've earned it after all."

Several Aurors chuckled in response. The Minister then gestured for everyone to quiet down. Malfoy had slipped into the crowd and Harry managed to spot him some feet away. The blond was staring at him so Harry glanced away.

"I want to welcome Harry and not to make him feel too much in the spotlight, but just would like to say a few things," Kingsley said. "As you all know, Harry has done unimaginable things and has faced great obstacles especially for his age. Yet he remains victorious and he is the reason we now have peace."

The Aurors cheered. Harry felt extremely awkward.

"So let's all celebrate," Kingsley said summoning two glasses of champagne, one of which he handed to Harry. "To Harry."

Glasses of champagne levitated around the room and all the Aurors raised their glasses.

"To Harry," they cheered.

"Now let's enjoy this night. And please, don't bombard Harry too much. It's his nice to celebrate as well," Kinsgley said, winking at him.

Harry smiled gratefully. Once the speech was over some Aurors came up to him to shake his hand and talk with him. Several of them he didn't know. Harry talked with them a few minutes and then searched around for Malfoy with his eyes. He hoped the blond didn't think he was ditching him. After many Aurors came up to shake his hand and talk with him, he finally got a bit of a break. He took a big gulp of his champagne.

"A little much, is it?"

Harry turned to see Professor Slughorn.

"Oh, hi, sir. It's nice to see you again."

Slughorn grinned. "You too. I see you're a bit frazzled by all this."

"Er, yeah," Harry said.

"You must be proud of your accomplishments," he said.

Harry gave him a confused look.

Slughorn smiled again. "I mean about defeating Lord Voldemort."

"Oh, right."

"I understand that you took your entire seventh year off to search for his Horcruxes. That was a brave thing to do."

"Thank you, sir. Er, yeah, I missed out on a lot."

"Oh?"

"Er, just studying for my Newts and other things. I was also on a Quidditch team up until that time too."

"Yes, that's right," he said, eyeing him. "You passed your Newts?"

"Yeah. My friend tutored me and the Ministry gave me extended time to study and take the test due to my circumstances."

"How nice," he said.

Harry nodded, taking another sip of his drink. Slughorn just continued to stare at him and smile. He was a bit different than he remembered. He appeared to have dark circles under his eyes and he was slightly pale. His hair was in disarray but otherwise appeared the same.

"Well, Harry, I've been meaning to catch up with you. I feel though that I don't want to take all the attention away from you. I was hoping that you and I could catch up sometime one-on-one," he said.

"Oh, sure," Harry said, nodding.

Slughorn grinned. "Wonderful. I hear from the Ministry that you are in a very secure location. The Grimmauld Place, right?"

"Yeah. My apartment isn't safe right now."

"Yes, I heard some rumors about that. I'm sorry."

Harry knew he was just being polite but Slughorn was the same nosey professor he remembered.

"You know, I've always wanted to see that place. I heard it was amazing and the fact that it was the Order's hideout, well, that's even more impressive. Do you think sometime you could invite me over to chat there and give me a tour?"

"Harry!" an Auror called out to him.

"Er, sure," Harry said, finally.

Slughorn smiled and raised his glass. "Excellent. I will contact you later then. Enjoy your celebration."

His eyes gleamed as if he had just gotten his way. It was the same old Slughorn. He always wanted something in return and being able to brag about seeing the Order's former hideout was no exception. Harry wondered why Slughorn was there. He wasn't an Auror although he did fight at the Battle of Hogwarts. Perhaps Kingsley knew that they were acquainted and invited him. Slughorn walked away as others approached him, wanting to talk with him. Thankfully it was a short conversation. Harry then began wandering around searching for Malfoy.

"How's the famous Harry Potter doing?" a voice drawled.

Harry wheeled around to see Malfoy eyeing him. He was leaning up against one of the pillars at the side of the room. Malfoy clearly had had several glasses of champagne already. His skin was a bit flushed and he was smirking too contently.

"There you are," Harry said.

"Sorry, didn't want to intrude on all the interviews," Malfoy teased.

"Shut-up," Harry muttered. "This is what I was hoping to avoid."

"At least you got compliments on your robe, thanks to me," Malfoy said, gesturing.

"Yeah," Harry said. "How many have you had?"

"Not enough," Malfoy said, taking another gulp.

"Slow down. I don't want to have to carry you home."

An amused expression crossed his face and Malfoy stepped closer. "Are you offering to carry me, Potter?"

"Harry!"

Turning, they both saw an older wizard sauntering up to him. He didn't have the nicest expression on his face, but it wasn't directed at him. It was directed at Malfoy. There were two younger Aurors accompanying this older wizard. Harry recognized him as Auror Croaker. He was one of the Aurors who overlooked the Department of Mysteries.

"Harry, I don't mean to alarm you but this boy is not to be trusted. He was a Death Eater."

He felt Malfoy's embarrassment and fear.

"Er, it's all right," Harry said quickly. He felt bad for the blond.

Auror Croaker looked appalled. "It is not! He is probably still in touch with other Death Eaters that have gone into hiding."

Harry glanced over at Kingsley who was distracted at the moment. "Er, that's not – "

"Look! See, here," he said, grabbing Malfoy's arm.

The blond was too stunned to do anything as the Auror raised up his robe sleeve. Only there was nothing there. Not even a red mark. The Auror gapped and then quickly raised the other sleeve only to be just as stunned.

"But the boy – he had a Dark Mark! He's a Death Eater!"

Several Aurors nearby turned but thankfully everyone else in the room was in their own conversations. Harry saw Malfoy's face was paler and he could feel that he wanted to leave. Suddenly, a surge of anger hit him.

"He's not a Death Eater," Harry said, staring Auror Croaker in the face. "He was dismissed after it was learned he was forced into it."

"Still, his family –"

"Mr. Malfoy and I are friends," Harry said. "We went to Hogwarts together and we came here together. I invited him."

Malfoy's head turned toward him and he could feel the blond's gaze on him. Auror Croaker gave him the most outrageous expression. Kingsley had noticed the exchange.

"Is there a problem?" Kingsley asked.

"Minister, this boy," Auror Croaker sputtered, pointing a finger at Malfoy who backed up slightly.

"Harry has invited his friend here, Mr. Croaker," Kingsley said calmly. "And Mr. Malfoy was cleared of any charges. He is welcome here just like anybody else."

The Auror sputtered again, shut his mouth tightly and then walked away. The other two Aurors hanging around him smiled at Harry and shook his hand before leaving.

"Very sorry about that, Mr. Malfoy. Some of the older Aurors here are a little stuck in their ways," Kingsley said.

Malfoy nodded silently.

"Minister, have you found out anything else about our apartments?" Harry asked.

"Ah, well, upon investigating the hexes on Mr. Malfoy's apartment, it was determined that the hexes were not life-threatening," Kingsley said.

"But my couch tried to swallow me," Malfoy said.

"True, but it was just a trapping hex. It was supposed to trap you so the other hexes, namely the boil hex and the distortion hexes could take effect without you being able to block them."

"Distortion hex?" Harry asked.

"It's meant to change one's appearance for the worse, usually affecting skin color, turning it all kinds of shades. It also can create rashes, straggly hair and so forth."

"So…it was a prank?" Malfoy asked.

"I'm still not sure. And Harry I still haven't found any trace of what was done to your apartment. There was a subtle hint of a tracking charm, but the effects of your protections on your apartment were cancelling it out. If the same person who broke into your apartments set up the Inferi attack then it's safe to assume this person is dangerous to you both. It wouldn't be wise to leave the safety of Grimmauld Place. I would advise you both to stay put for now until we figure out who is behind it. Then we'll know more."

Both he and Malfoy nodded.

"Thanks, Kingsley," Harry said with a smile.

Kingsley nodded. "You're welcome."

With that he left them. Harry breathed out heavily. "Well, I guess that means maybe this person wasn't trying to kill us."

"It doesn't make sense why they would use those hexes," Malfoy said, running a hand through his hair.

"Yeah," Harry agreed.

"Potter," Malfoy said, after a minute.

"Yeah?"

Malfoy gestured for him to follow. They went behind one of the pillars so as not to be bombarded by other Aurors. The blond looked very nervous as he spoke.

"You didn't, I mean, what you did – you didn't have to," Malfoy said.

Harry stared at him in confusion for a second. Malfoy stumbled a bit, clearly drunk, and then finally met his gaze. It took him a second to figure out what Malfoy was referring to.

"Oh, er, no problem," he said. The blond was obviously referring to standing up for him in front of Auror Croaker. "I owed you one anyway, right?"

Malfoy snorted and pushed his bangs out of his face. "Yeah."

"Besides, I kind of made you come to this thing anyway. It wouldn't be fair to just let you take all the hits."

Malfoy gazed at him. The blond suddenly stumbled again and Harry reacted by reaching out to put his arms around him. He held him up and Malfoy gripped his arm, staring at him in surprise.

"You okay?" Harry asked.

Malfoy stared at him for several long seconds. Harry thought he heard his name so he started to turn his head. Suddenly, he felt something warm and soft that brushed against his lips and landed on the corner of his mouth since his head was mid-turn. Harry's whole body felt rigid. When he turned he realized that based upon where Malfoy's face was and the expression on the blond's face, Malfoy had just tried to kiss him. He had to blink a couple times to make sure that he was really at the Ministry and not dreaming.

"Harry, where did you go?" a voice called out.

It had all happened within seconds. Malfoy had tried to kiss him. Then he pulled away, having managed to stand up by himself.

"There you are," an Auror said, popping his head in. "They want to get a picture of everyone."

"Er, okay," Harry said quickly. His face was heating up. What if someone saw? And what the hell just happened? That couldn't have really happened.

Harry and Malfoy stepped out as they were ushered by Aurors to get into a group photo. During the photos, he attempted to glance at Malfoy but the blond wasn't looking at him. He was avoiding his gaze. By the end of the night, which was around 11, the Minister had flying cars taking everyone home, including them. He patted Harry's head affectionately and shook Malfoy's hand. The blond had nodded to the Minister but said nothing. The two sat in the flying car looking out their respective windows in silence. Harry knew Malfoy had been drunk but he was sure the blond would still remember what he did. Harry's thoughts were spinning. The fact that Malfoy's whole demeanor changed meant the blond was embarrassed by what he did. What did it even mean? Did Malfoy like him?

All Harry could think was that Malfoy would probably not want to face him, which meant that he may go back to being a researcher just to avoid being partners with Harry. That thought alone gave Harry a sinking feeling. It felt like everything was going to fall apart. If Malfoy was too embarrassed about it, thinking that Harry would tease him relentlessly or perhaps fear of rejection, he might even move out of Grimmauld Place. A part of him was thinking selfishly that he didn't want to be alone there. He actually liked having Malfoy there. Then the other part of him was worried that if Malfoy moved out, he may not be as safe from whoever was after them. Even though their apartments weren't life-threatening, the same person could've sent the Inferi which was definitely a sign that they wanted to harm them. Still, Malfoy had a lot of pride for a Malfoy. If he was embarrassed enough, he may not think about his safety.

When they got to the King's Cross Station, they walked to Grimmauld Place, which wasn't far. When they got inside, Malfoy immediately started heading for the stairs. Harry's entire body froze in panic. He had to act fast. He knew the blond had probably sobered up on the ride back.

"Malfoy," Harry called up, "thanks for coming with me."

The blond halted on the steps and turned. He nodded and then started up the stairs again.

"Malfoy, wait!" Harry exclaimed, stepping up onto stairs. "What's wrong? Is it Auror Croaker, what he said? I'm sorry he said all that to you!" Harry said quickly. He couldn't even believe he was pretending that it wasn't about the kiss. He was mainly trying to distract the blond from his embarrassment. Maybe pretending that it didn't happen would help.

The blond halted again and turned. His eyebrows were furrowed.

"If I would've known that some of the Aurors would react like that, I wouldn't have, you know, invited you and put you through that," Harry said.

"It's fine, Potter," Malfoy said quickly. It wasn't in his usual drawl.

Malfoy disappeared upstairs and Harry just stood not knowing what to do. He wanted Malfoy to continue to be his partner. Sure the kiss was awkward but the blond had been drunk. Then again on top of the dream maybe Malfoy did like him in some way. He thought Malfoy was straight, but maybe not.

Harry anxiously went into the kitchen for a butterbeer. To his surprise Malfoy came down a few minutes later. He obviously had the same idea to get a butterbeer. The blond saw him and his eyes widened. The blond silently went over to the fridge to grab his drink.

"Hey, Malfoy, wait," Harry said quickly. "Please."

"What, Potter?" Malfoy snapped. "I'm going to bed."

Harry realized in an instant if he didn't say something then Malfoy would probably stew over the incident all night long and decide to leave in the morning.

"Why are you upset? I said I was sorry about –"

"You know it's not that, Potter!" Malfoy snapped. "Just forget it. I don't need your sympathy, okay? I don't need you feeling sorry for me!"

"Draco, stop! Is this about the kiss?" Harry blurted out.

The blond halted.

"It's fine! Why are you getting all whacked out about it?"

Draco turned and stared at him with furrowed eyebrows. "It's fine?" he asked.

Harry realized that it hadn't come out exactly as he intended. Malfoy was staring at him both uncertainly and curiously. At least he wasn't running away.

"Look, I know you were drunk. It's no big deal. Really," Harry said.

Malfoy crossed his arms. "Potter, what are you saying? Are you – I mean, not that I'm judging at all – but are you…," Malfoy trailed off and just moved his hand.

Harry flushed red. "Well, er, no, I'm not – er, I'm just saying that it didn't bother me," he finished uncomfortably.

Malfoy stared at him. The blond finally exhaled deeply and then rubbed his face for a second. "Wait, so, what are you saying, Potter?"

"I'm just – if you want to pretend like it never happened or forget about it, then fine. I just mean that you don't have to be embarrassed about it. I won't ever mention it, not even between us, if you don't want," Harry said. He felt extremely uncomfortable with where the conversation was heading. Nothing seemed to be coming out right.

Malfoy stared at him silently and then glanced at the floor. He seemed unsure of what to say.

"What do you want to do? Do you want to forget about it?"

"I don't know," Malfoy said, shrugging. "I don't know what I was thinking."

Harry just smiled. "It's fine."

Malfoy nodded. He started to turn away and then stopped. "Wait. Potter, look, we can forget about it but I have to ask you something."

Harry swallowed and nodded. "Okay."

"I don't understand why it's not a big deal to you. Are you saying that you swing both ways?"

"Er, not – I mean, I haven't been with a guy, if that's what you're asking me," Harry said, feeling his face flush. "I'm not closed-minded or anything. I don't know."

Harry felt the alcohol in his system take over. "Why _did_ you kiss me?"

Harry's heart was beating a mile per minute as Malfoy hesitated.

"I don't know," he said, ringing a hand through his hair. "We can just forget it, Potter."

"Okay. You know, you really should watch how much you drink," Harry said.

Malfoy snorted slightly, seeming to relax a bit. "Yeah. I don't know what was in that champagne."

"I don't think it was what was in the champagne as much as how many of them you had," Harry joked. "Seriously, you could barely stand."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Shut-up, Potter."

Harry grinned, trying to ease the tension in the room. "Well, at least we survived it."

"Yeah, barely," Malfoy muttered.

"Yeah, well, I am definitely sleeping in tomorrow," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded in agreement. Harry took his butterbeer up the stairs as they both walked nearly side-by-side.

"I wonder what our next assignment will be," Harry said aloud.

Malfoy shrugged. "Who knows. Hopefully not another wild goose chase."

"Yeah, with a psychotic plant-addicted wizard."

They got to Harry's floor.

"Goodnight," Harry said.

Malfoy turned and glanced at him. Harry smiled and waved, showing him that everything was fine. The blond just nodded and then went up toward his room. When Harry got to his room he sat down on his bed and just held his butterbeer. That was the most awkward conversation he had ever had. Clearly Malfoy was drunk, but if he had also dreamed about him then did that mean that Malfoy liked him?

_No, that's impossible. Maybe it's not that he likes me like that. Maybe Malfoy is gay. I mean, he asked me if I swung both ways, but he didn't say which way he swung. If he is gay, maybe it's just because he's living with another guy. _

Sighing, Harry fell backward on the bed. He rubbed his temples. He really hoped that things wouldn't get more awkward between them. At least Malfoy seemed less embarrassed. It probably helped that Harry helped him blame it on the alcohol. The one thing that bothered him was where the conversation had been heading. It seemed like Malfoy was going to ask him something, but he wasn't sure what it was. Hopefully, they could just forget about the weird incident and move on.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Next chapter note:** I really don't want to make people wait for the next chapter. I really like writing this story, but I am pretty busy and since no one seems to be reviewing (despite all those that are following), I'm just not sure if I'll be motivated enough. But the next chapter would really start things going in their relationship. I know it seems like they're slowly getting into it at this point, but it's just to make it believable. The next chapter will start changing things between them.


	8. Crossing the Line

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 7: Crossing the Line **

Raising his hands above his head, Harry stretched. He hadn't gone to bed right away because of what happened with Malfoy the night before. Sighing, Harry groaned and rubbed his face. He sat up straight when he remembered that he now knew the password to get into Malfoy's trunk. The only problem was figuring out when the best opportunity would be to snoop.

Harry took a shower, letting the hot water relax his tense body. He wasn't sure how things would be now. A part of him was worried that Malfoy would still want to leave.

When he got downstairs Malfoy was already there. Perhaps the blond hadn't been able to sleep well either. Harry's strategy was just to act like nothing had happened.

"Hey," Harry said tiredly.

Malfoy nodded.

Great. The blond was more silent than usual. That wasn't a good sign. Harry panicked at the thought that maybe Malfoy had spent the night packing up his things.

_It's just because I don't know what he's hiding. _

Harry knew it was more than that. He liked having a partner and he was used to Malfoy now.

"Yesterday was a long night. I wasn't expecting we'd be there that long."

Malfoy rubbed his forehead. "Tell me about it."

"So, er, what are your plans today?"

"I don't know. Boredom and more boredom."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with you?'

Malfoy sighed and dropped his hands to the table. "What's wrong is I'm not used to sitting on my ass having nothing to do. Sometimes waiting for these next assignments is grueling."

"Yeah," Harry agreed, propping his chin on his hand. "What about a wizard resort? We still have a week off, right?"

"That doesn't help us today," Malfoy grumbled. "Those places fill up fast and you always have to book them in advance. There probably wouldn't be open rooms for another couple weeks."

Harry sighed heavily. They sat there in silence. Harry was grateful that Malfoy was acting like nothing happened also. Suddenly, an idea struck him. Harry grinned widely.

"I know what we can do."

Malfoy glanced up at him and raised an eyebrow at Harry's expression. "What?"

Harry's grin widened. "I can take you to an amusement park."

Malfoy's expression contorted in confusion. "Wait, what's a – no way!" Malfoy snapped. "Are you talking about that muggle place?"

"Come on, Malfoy, there's nothing else to do."

"I'd rather die of boredom!"

"Really?" Harry asked sarcastically. "Here, let's make a deal."

"Potter, I'm not—"

"Just hear me out! We go there and go on _one_ ride. Just one. And if you don't like it at all then we can leave and you can stay cooped up in the house dying of boredom."

Malfoy glared at him.

"Deal?"

Harry held out his hand. Malfoy glanced at it and sighed irritably. "Fine."

He shook Harry's hand briefly. Harry grinned victoriously.

"I'm going to regret this," Malfoy muttered.

They both ate breakfast first. Harry was already dressed so afterwards he waited for Malfoy to come back down. The blond came down a few minutes later dressed in jeans and a white button-down, collared, long-sleeved shirt. It had silver dragon-scale buttons again. Apparently, it was a style of shirt Malfoy liked. No one would notice the mica-like buttons so all-in-all it looked normal.

"Let's get this over with," Malfoy said, grabbing his coat.

Harry rolled his eyes. They took a flying car first to America. Then the interesting part came for Malfoy. Since they couldn't fly in muggle territory, they had to get to the park by bus. Harry used muggle money to buy them bus tickets. As they got on, Malfoy stared uncertainly at all the strange muggles sitting and listening to their ipods or talking on their cellphones. They found a two-seater next to a window and sat down next to one another.

"I can't believe I'm here," Malfoy muttered leaning his head back as he stared up at the ceiling.

Harry stared at him in annoyance. "Stop being so dramatic."

Malfoy gazed around him uncertainly. Other people got on the bus and walked by him, giving him a glance. Malfoy just sunk deeper into his seat.

"This thing goes so slow. And it keeps stopping!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Malfoy, seriously, shut-up."

The ride there was torturous but thankfully Harry had resisted the urge to throw himself out the window due to Malfoy's incessant ranting. They got to the amusement park and Harry purchased the tickets there as well. Malfoy stared up at the rides as they passed. There were lots of people running around, screams echoing in the air, and the smell of fried food.

"Okay. One ride as promised. Which one?"

Malfoy examined the rides they were close to.

"I've heard of this new one here. It's supposed to be the fastest rollercoaster in the park. You want to try that one?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

Harry grinned. "If you want afterwards, whether or not you like the ride, we can get some cotton candy."

"Some what?"

"Cotton candy. It's edible. Really sugary and really bad for you."

"Sounds like something you'd wear."

"You can just try some, Malfoy. It won't kill you."

"Being around all these Mu—people will kill me," he said, correcting himself as an older couple walked by them.

Despite his whining, Malfoy seemed to be examining the place with interest. Harry was grateful that while it was still cold outside, it wasn't horrible. They finally got to it and there was a long line.

"Do we really have to wait in this?" Malfoy asked impatiently.

"Yes. We can't use, you know, to cut in line," Harry whispered.

Malfoy sighed and crossed his arms. They watched the others go up before them and how they would scream as the ride got going.

"They sound like they're all being hit with a Cruciatus Curse," Malfoy said.

"It's not that kind of screaming. Come on, we're going to be up next."

Their turn came ten minutes later and Harry gestured for Malfoy to get up in the front. They sat in the very front and got strapped in.

"You ready?" Harry asked, grinning.

Malfoy shrugged. "Sure."

The rollercoaster started and carried them up the large hill. Malfoy crossed his arms but Harry reached out and grabbed his arm. Malfoy gazed at him, surprised.

"You're supposed to have your arms out."

Malfoy put his arms out like Harry. Then suddenly the rollercoaster dropped down rapidly and the people behind them screamed. Harry felt his stomach flip in excitement and he glanced at Malfoy. The blond didn't look scared. In fact, he looked like he was enjoying himself. The second that they started going into the loops Malfoy actually grinned. He especially enjoyed it when he heard the people behind screaming louder in terror. By the time they reached the end, Malfoy laughed with amusement.

"That wasn't bad, but did you hear the people behind us?"

"Yes, that's what they do on rollercoasters."

Malfoy snorted. "It wasn't scary. It was like a fast broom ride."

Harry gave him a look. Thankfully, everyone else was too busy talking to one another to notice them.

"See, it wasn't bad," Harry said as they walked away from the ride.

Running a hand through his hair, Malfoy fixed his bangs then glanced at him nonchalantly.

"Fine. We can stay for a little bit, but I can only take so much of this world."

Harry grinned. "Great. Now time for some cotton candy."

They went into a food line and Harry got them some cotton candy. Malfoy stared at the strange blue lump. He glanced at Harry who just grinned in response.

"Go on. Eat it."

"This isn't edible, is it?" Malfoy drawled.

Raising an eyebrow, Harry reached out, opened it, and took a clump and shoved it into his mouth. Malfoy's mouth parted in surprise. Then he slowly took out a piece, stared at it, and gradually brought it to his mouth. He took a bite of it. The second it melted in his mouth, his eyes widened in surprise and then he made a face.

"What? It's good," Harry said.

"It's really sweet," Malfoy said.

The rest of the piece he was holding was, to Harry's amusement, stuck to his hand. Malfoy shook his hand roughly.

"Damn this stupid – it's sticky!"

Harry laughed. "Yes, it is."

Malfoy glared at him. It took him several minutes to get the piece of cotton candy off his hand. Then his fingers stuck together. The look on Malfoy's face made his day.

They spent a couple hours going around looking at the rides. Malfoy made snide comments on some of them, but for the most part he was open to giving them a try. Harry saved the Ferris Wheel for the last ride. They got in the small compartment and slowly started rising to the top. Harry stared out the window in awe of the view.

"Is it supposed to go this slow?"

"Yes, Malfoy. It's so you can enjoy the view," Harry said, gesturing.

Malfoy was seated with one leg propped up on the seat and his arms crossed.

"So, you like this place, right?"

"I said it's bearable, Potter. _Bearable_."

Rolling his eyes, Harry sat back in his seat. "Whatever. The muggle world isn't all bad. Sure it's not always exciting. You know me, I get excited by every little thing in the wizard world, but even things like this are exciting."

Malfoy cocked his head. "But you grew up in the muggle world, right? So you've been to these places before?"

Harry's smiled faded a bit. He shook his head. "No. My muggle relatives were…strict. I never got to go anywhere."

It was silence for a minute and then Malfoy cleared his throat.

"Look. I know this is getting a bit personal."

Harry turned to face him.

"I sort of heard a rumor in school that your relatives were cruel to you. Some people said that they tortured you. Others said that they didn't know you were a wizard when you were a baby but then when you turned 11 and went to Hogwarts they abandoned you. There were all sorts of rumors."

Nervously, Harry bit his lip. "Well, the rumors aren't true…exactly. I mean, they're outrageous and exaggerated, but…my relatives were cruel to me."

Malfoy leaned forward. He dropped his leg that had been propped up on the seat. "How?"

"Well, er…," Harry hesitated. He looked away and stared out the window. "They knew I was a wizard. Ever since I was a baby because Dumbledore came to drop me off to them. He had to explain the situation and he needed my aunt, who was my mom's sister so she knew her sister was a witch. He needed my aunt to agree to take care of me and agree to seal the protection charm."

"Protection charm?"

"Yeah, it's a very powerful charm that could only be sealed by her because she was my blood relative. It cloaked me so that Voldemort couldn't sense me or find me in the muggle world. I was safer there than in the wizard world," Harry said. "So long as I stayed within the range of the charm, he couldn't find me. So they knew I was a wizard and because of that…well, they didn't exactly like the fact that I was magical. They were, you know, scared of me."

"I guess I can see how wizards can be frightening to muggles," Malfoy said. "But they were your family."

Harry sighed heavily. "Yeah, you'd think that would be enough. My aunt didn't get along with my mum. They had gotten into a fight. I think I figured out that it's because my aunt was jealous that her sister got magic powers and she didn't. So she took it out on me."

"What – I mean, do you mind if I ask what they did?"

Harry looked surprised and then looked down briefly before looking back up at him. Malfoy's eyebrows furrowed.

"Is it bad?"

"It's not…good, but it's not the worst thing ever. I'm sure a lot of kids get way worse abuse. The worst thing I think, besides the name calling, and saying that my parents deserved what happened to them, was being forced to sleep and basically live in a closet until I was 11."

The blond's mouth parted in shock. "What?! Dumbledore would've known about that, wouldn't he?"

"Yeah, he knew," Harry said quietly. "He just thought it was better than being tortured and killed by Voldemort."

"But Dumbledore was powerful and intimidating when he wanted to be. Why couldn't he just scare them into treating you better?"

"I kind of wondered that myself. I think it's because my aunt had to be willing to take me in. So he couldn't force her to take me in otherwise the charm wouldn't work. Since she had to be willing, scaring the crap out of her wouldn't work nor controlling her with magic. But after I was 11 and I got my letter which was addressed to be in the closet, I was eventually given my own room."

"Still…that's not great."

"Yeah. They also starved me which was why I was so skinny."

Malfoy's mouth dropped open. "Dumbledore was some protector," he said sarcastically.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, it was awful, but Dumbledore wouldn't have let them do anything worse to me. I was getting fed enough to live on and I eventually got my own room. I think partly the way they treated me toughened me a lot. Even though it was awful, the things I had to face with Voldemort were way worse. Besides, it makes me appreciate everything now so much more."

"I guess so," Malfoy said, after a slight pause. He stared at Harry for a few seconds.

"So, er, what was it like growing up with parents? Must've been better than that," Harry said.

Malfoy's eyes widened a bit. Then he frowned and shrugged. "It was fine. My parents gave me almost everything, financially, but they were strict too."

The blond went silent after that. He clearly didn't want to talk about his parents. Harry wasn't sure he should push the issue, at least for the time being. They were both content to stare out the window as they reached the peak of the Ferris Wheel. As it started to go back down, he felt Malfoy's eyes on him. The blond was probably stunned to learn what a difficult childhood he had. Harry turned and caught his eye. Malfoy blinked and quickly looked away. Harry stared at him curiously. It looked like Malfoy wanted to say something but he must've changed his mind.

Once the ride was over they decided to head back. Unfortunately for Malfoy, they had to take the bus half way back until they got to a secure enough location that they could take out their brooms and fly back.

The door closed behind them as they entered. Harry was grateful for the broom-ride back. He had been sweating from all the walking and riding rollercoasters.

"See, that wasn't too bad, right?"

Malfoy shrugged. "It was fine, but it still doesn't beat the resorts we have here."

Harry's eyes lit up. "When do you think we could go?"

"I don't know. It depends on when we'll have another break since we have to book them in advance. It would have to be during a time we know we have at least a few days off."

"Good point. Considering we start up another assignment in the next few days I guess we'll have to wait," Harry said, sighing.

"Yeah," Malfoy said. He went to the fridge to get a butterbeer then sat down on the couch. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"Oh, er, well, Ron's going to be back in town."

The expression on Malfoy's face turned sour. "Oh. Great. So, what, you guys will be spending all day together playing pretend Quidditch or something?" he drawled.

Harry glared. Malfoy's attitude problem was coming back. Just when he thought he could be decent he did something annoying.

"No. We're just going out to eat to catch up. He wants to tell me about his trip with the dragons."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah, I wonder how many times he got burned."

"Well I won't know until I see him," Harry countered.

"Clever, Potter."

Harry gave him a smug look and then went into the kitchen to grab a butterbeer as well. He thought about the questions that Malfoy had asked him. The blond was curiously about his life but then when it came to talking about his own he was secretive. Harry knew that Malfoy hadn't gotten along with his parents, at least at the end there. Maybe things cooled down between them or maybe not. The fact that he didn't want to talk about them probably meant things hadn't. Still, it made Harry more suspicious. Why wouldn't the blond share simple growing up stories? Was there something he was hiding? Maybe something about his father or mother that he didn't want Harry to know?

_In the memory, Malfoy said he didn't want to be a part of the family, but maybe he still knows secrets about his parents. Maybe Lucius is up to something. If Malfoy isn't helping him get released from Azkaban, maybe Narcissa is. _

Harry frowned. Malfoy's family probably had lots of secrets. In the memory he also mentioned another pureblood family that Harry wasn't familiar with. Narcissa said they had been hiding out in Russia. Their family was probably also a Voldemort-supporter. It was possible that they were still active, maybe even attempting to get Death Eaters out of Azkaban. Harry shivered. He couldn't imagine all the Death Eaters escaping. It would be chaos. Then a scary thought occurred to him. Was that why Malfoy was in the Archives? To look up information for his mother to help get his father out of Azkaban? It didn't sound like he wanted to help, but maybe his mother had bribed him back. Or maybe he felt guilty and changed his mind. They were his parents after all.

Harry shook his head. He was just speculating. There was no way he was going to know anything for sure until he found out what Malfoy needed from the Archives. That meant dosing him with another sleep potion. He only had 2 sleep potions left.

Minutes later he went back into the living room to see that Malfoy wasn't there like usual. He had probably gone up to his room. Harry decided to go up to his room as well. A part of him wanted to go up to Malfoy's room and see what he was doing. Sighing, Harry sat in his plush chair in front of his fireplace drinking his butterbeer. He definitely couldn't slip Malfoy the sleep potion tonight.

In the morning, Harry got up and dressed and went downstairs. Malfoy wasn't up yet. He decided to go to the Opaleye a bit early. It was their new meeting spot. To his surprise, Ron was already there stuffing his face. Harry grinned as he approached.

"Hungry?"

Ron glanced up. "Harry! Oh, er, yeah a bit. I actually just got in."

Harry sat down. "Looks good."

"It is! It's Ashwinder meat mixed in pasta. You should get it. Oh! And try the Fried Erkling Fingers."

"Er, I think I'll skip the last one, but I'll get the pasta."

Harry ordered the pasta with a fizzy Nettle juice. It came in its frozen solid container, like drinking from a bottle-shaped lump of ice.

"How have you been?" Ron asked.

"Pretty good."

"Have there been any more attacks?"

"No. Kingsley's still looking into it though. He's not sure what to think at this point."

"Blimey," Ron said with a sigh. "It's always something with you."

Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Er, not that it's your fault."

"Yeah. So, how was dragon training?"

"It was bloody amazing, Harry! I mean, so long as you don't get burned."

Harry inwardly smiled, remembering Malfoy's comment.

"The baby dragons that hatched were so wicked. I got to help teach one to do a flip in the air. Anyway, they think there might be a position open for me, but I'd have to go through their official training program, you know, not just shadowing Charlie. He's still there, but I came back because they don't have anything for me yet, but Charlie's going to owl me and keep me posted. I could travel the world just like him and meet all kinds of dragons and become a famous dragon trainer!"

"Sounds really exciting," Harry said, smiling.

Ron nodded. "So how's your job going?"

"I actually really like it."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously. It's very interesting and it keeps me on my toes. The last couple of plants I encountered were really funny. And Dimitri's got this entire floor dedicated to housing some of the endangered plants and it's really amazing."

"Wow. It sounds like you want to stay there. That's good though. At least you have a good job and you're not stuck trying to decide what you want to do. Oh, and I haven't heard much from Hermione. I wanted to see if she could get together today too but she has a lot going on, as usual."

"Yeah, hopefully she's not trying to get through Mediwitch school using a Time Turner," Harry joked.

Ron snorted. "Yeah, I wouldn't put it past her. So, er, my dad told me you're living at Grimmauld Place now."

Harry almost choked on his drink. He swallowed thickly. "Er, yeah. It's actually really nice. I fixed it up a bit and it's really homey."

"It's huge! I can't believe you're in that place all by yourself."

Harry forced a smile. "Well, I figured since Sirius left it for me anyway it would be a waste not to live there. Besides, it is the safest place to be and with my history it makes sense to stay there."

"True," Ron agreed. "So, can I come over some time? I remember a little bit about it, but you know, we didn't really have much time to enjoy it."

Harry's throat constricted. "Er, well, that might not be a good idea yet. It's safer if only the Minister knows the location right now, you know, until we find out who's behind the attacks. I don't want to put you in danger."

Harry felt bad for lying. It was true that he didn't want Ron to be in danger, but that wasn't the only reason.

"So, Harry, have you been just working?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, er, I just feel bad that I've been gone and Hermione's been busy. Do you ever, you know, hang out with anyone? Just go to a pub and have a butterbeer or anything?"

His stomach clenched uncomfortably.

"I, er, yeah I hang out sometimes. I've also had a couple weeks off from work recently."

"Who did you hang out with?"

Harry felt the panic rise within him. In his haste, he blurted out something he felt he would regret later.

"Er, this guy named Cyprian at work."

Ron blinked. "Oh? Is he nice?"

"Yeah, er, his ancestor is the founder of Hogsmeade."

"No way!" Ron exclaimed.

"Yeah, and he's nice. He's a researcher there."

"Brilliant! I'm glad that you're not just by yourself. I'd feel really bad about that."

"It's not your fault. We all have to move on with our careers and our lives, but we'll always be friends and we'll always find time to spend together."

Ron grinned. "Yeah, definitely. So, why don't you take me there?"

Harry choked on his drink. He coughed a couple times. "I'm sorry, where?"

"To your work. You can show me around and introduce me to Cyprian. What's wrong?"

Harry's eyes were wide. "Oh, er, nothing, that's fine. Yeah, I can show you around."

"Great! I'm excited to see what you do!"

Harry forced a smile. This was why lying was bad.

They headed over to the building and as they approached Harry prayed Cyprian wasn't there. He was more worried that Cyprian would accidentally mention Malfoy. They got to the building and Ron marveled at how enormous it was.

"I can show you the plant room first. It's on the top floor," Harry said, heading toward the elevator.

"Where does Cyprian work?"

Harry's jaw clenched. He had no idea exactly where Cyprian worked.

"Er, he works all around. He takes data up to the top floor sometimes because I've seen him up there. Do you want to check that out first?"

"Sure!"

They got into the elevator and headed to the top floor. Ron was amazed at the long hallway surrounded by the large beautiful windows. They got to the door and opened it. Ron was almost smacked in the face by a small plant running across the wall.

"Harry!"

Wheeling his head around, Harry looked up at the high area and to his surprise saw Cyprian waving.

"Hey Cyprian," Harry said, waving.

Ron turned and smiled, waving up at him.

"Can we come up there?" Harry asked.

Cyprian smiled brightly. "Sure! Hang on."

He waved his wand and a small platform floated down to them. They both stepped on it and rose up to the top.

"Wow! This is bloody amazing!" Ron exclaimed. He gazed down at the view of all the plant creatures.

The sun was shining in brightly warming up the entire room despite the chilly weather.

"Cyprian, this is Ron, my best friend."

"Nice to meet you," he said, as they shook hands.

"You too," Ron said. "Harry's told me about you."

Cyprian's eyes locked onto Harry. "Really?"

"Yeah, he says you're a researcher."

"Yep! I collect all the data that Harry brings, along with the data other field researchers collect. That's the plant that Harry just brought back to us," Cyprian said, pointing to the Blue Snargaluff. "It's very rare."

Cyprian then glanced at Harry and smiled. He smiled back politely. Cyprian wasn't being as obnoxious today and he was grateful for that. He was making a good impression.

"So are you really related to the guy who founded Hogsmeade?" Ron asked.

"Yep," Cyprian said with a smile. "My parents own and take care of it right now. They're just in charge of the contracts for each store that's set up and they help the store owners with any issues they might have. A small percent of all profits from each store goes to my parents though. Only a third of the stores are ours though."

"That's so wicked!" Ron exclaimed.

Adjusting his glasses, Cyprian glanced at Harry. "Actually, we're opening a new store in Hogsmeade next month. I was hoping Harry would be able to come to the opening and celebration. You're welcome to come too."

"Awesome! Yeah, if I'm still in the area that would be cool. I might be going back to Romania for dragon training."

"Really? How neat! Is that dangerous?" Cyprian asked.

"A little, but most of the dragons are trained since they were babies so they cooperate more, but if they get upset they can throw a tantrum and try to burn your face off," Ron said.

Cyprian laughed. "Sounds like you and Harry share that danger quality."

Ron grinned. "Well, I did help him save the world."

Harry smiled.

"So, Harry, will you be able to come to the opening?" Cyprian asked.

"Sure."

Cyprian grinned. "Great! I'll let my parents know you're coming. They'll be so exstatic to meet you. When I told them I was working with the famous Harry Potter they didn't believe me at first. Then I showed them your name which was published on the draft of the volume we're working on for all the assignments you're doing this year. Dimitri let me take it home to show them. I brought it right back of course, but you should've seen the look on their faces."

"I'm kind of used to people having those looks when Harry's around," Ron said, patting Harry's shoulder.

Harry just smiled awkwardly. He was grateful that Cyprian wasn't mentioning that he had a partner at all. He wondered why he didn't ask Harry to invite Malfoy to the opening as well. Maybe they didn't get along. It was weird since Malfoy said he didn't really know Cyprian. Harry figured it was just that Cyprian wanted to show him off to his parents since he was famous. Malfoy wasn't famous so maybe that's why he wasn't invited. It reminded him of Professor Slughorn and his selective club at Hogwarts.

Cyprian and Ron started talking more together as Cyprian showed them both the data he had been working on.

"Oh, Harry, I almost forgot! There's another assignment for you already. It's not urgent if you don't want to take it yet. Dimitri knows he told you guys two weeks."

Ron glanced at him curiously.

"Oh, er, I'll take it now," Harry said quickly.

"I'll be right back," he said, smiling.

Once Cyprian left, Ron turned to him. "He is really nice, Harry. And I can't believe you met another famous person! Well, semi-famous I guess."

"Yeah, because that's what I was going for," Harry joked.

Cyprian came back moments later and handed Harry an envelope. They finally said their goodbyes, to Harry's relief. Once they were outside, Harry breathed out heavily.

"We should definitely get together and play Quidditch," Ron said.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, definitely. I'll see you later."

"Okay. Good luck with your assignment."

Harry waved and then took off on his broom back to the house. It was already almost one in the afternoon. When Harry got back to the house, he saw Malfoy lying on the couch with his arm draped over his eyes.

"Are you taking a nap?" Harry teased.

Malfoy lifted his arm and stared at him. "No. So, what did Weasley have to say? Was he bald?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed in confusion for a second. Then he snorted. "He didn't get burned by a dragon."

"Pity."

"So what have you been doing? Lying around like a slug?"

"I have nothing better to do," Malfoy said.

"Actually, that's not true," Harry said as Malfoy gazed at him curiously. "Ron wanted to see the place where I worked so I showed him. Cyprian was there and he said we have an assignment, but Dimitri knows he told us it would be 2 weeks so he said it's not urgent."

"It is urgent," Malfoy said, getting up. "I'm dying of boredom."

Harry rolled his eyes. Malfoy approached him and Harry took out the envelope. The blond opened it and read it.

"What does it say?"

"We have to get a sample thorn from a Morsus Spicula."

"What's that?"

Malfoy sighed. "It's a pain in the ass. They're said to be very hard to spot because they like to burrow underground. They also can feel the vibrations of anyone walking around and will set up defense mechanisms if you get too close."

"Like what?"

"Not sure. But I heard that they're really hard to corner so this might be interesting. I know that they've been spotted in the Lake District of Cumbria in England."

"Oh, good, that's close. We can just fly by broom. I've never been there before, have you?"

"Yeah. There are a lot of mountainous areas there because they like hiding in mountains so that makes it more difficult. At least it will most likely be hiding in a secluded area. They like being isolated. There isn't much about them though. Most people have just seen them from afar."

"All right. I guess it will be a challenge."

Malfoy snorted. "What else is new?"

Harry shrugged. "Should we go now?"

"Why not. I don't have anything better to do."

They both summoned their brooms and waited till they were outside. They had to wait and make sure muggles weren't around before taking off.

It wasn't a very long broom ride. Harry stared in awe at the surrounding landscape. It was breathtaking. There was a small body of water that they flew over and the entire place was all green. The place was covered with trees and other plants, leading up to the mountains. They flew toward the mountains and as they neared they hovered close to the ground.

"How should we track it?"

"I'm not sure exactly," Malfoy said. "I suppose we try to stay off the ground and look for signs."

"Er, like what?"

"I don't know, Potter! I'm not an expert!" Malfoy exclaimed.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Clearly you're in a bad mood. I thought you'd be happy we're on an assignment."

"I am," Malfoy said stiffly.

Harry's eyes narrowed. Something was bothering the blond. He had been in a bad mood ever since Harry said he was leaving to meet Ron. Or maybe Malfoy regretted going to the Ministry Celebration with him. Swallowing, Harry felt the guilt rise.

"Are you mad that I forced you to go to a muggle amusement park?"

Malfoy snorted. "No, Potter, but I'm not going there again. I just happened to be desperate."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

They both circled the mountain area carefully. Harry's eyes narrowed when he saw some drag marks in the dirt.

"Hold on. What's that?"

They hovered above the spot and Malfoy tilted his head. "It could be tracks."

Harry started searching for other drag marks.

"I don't see any other drag marks. Do you think it went underground here?"

"I don't know. I guess we can use a spell to try to draw it out."

"Okay. Got any ideas?"

Malfoy shrugged. "I'll try a tornado spell again. It worked well on the first plant we tackled."

Harry nodded. "Okay. I'll go over here just in case it tries to escape."

He had his wand ready. Malfoy nodded to him and then began summoning a tornado spell. The ground began to swirl and shake. Something banged up against the surface, cracking it. Harry's eyes widened and he signaled to Malfoy that he thought something was there. Malfoy drew a little closer and began to unleash the tornado spell at its fullest. The winds picked up and Harry saw the ground begin to cave. He thought it was the spell until something shot out of the ground so fast that Harry's eyes barely registered what was happening.

Malfoy let out a howl as the red vine wrapped around his leg. Malfoy had dropped his wand and was clutching the top of his leg. Harry realized in horror that the thorn of the red plant had jabbed into his leg. It all happened in a matter of seconds. Harry tried to shout a spell at it but the vine lifted Malfoy up in the air by his injured leg. Harry reacted by shouting a freezing spell at it. The vine crystallized as it froze over. It unwound from Malfoy's leg. Harry flew over and caught Malfoy before he hit the ground. The blond landed part way on his broom and Harry wrapped his arm around his torso to keep him from falling.

The vine, although frozen, burrowed back into the ground. Harry dropped down to the ground slowly allowing Malfoy to slip off the broom and sit on the ground. Then he grabbed Malfoy's wand.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked, reaching out toward Malfoy's leg.

"Don't!" Malfoy snapped, wincing.

There was blood oozing from the wound but it hadn't turned black which meant it wasn't poisonous. At least not so far as he could tell.

"It's not safe here. I'm going to levitate you back over to the grassy area to get away from the mountains," Harry said quickly.

Malfoy just exhaled through his clenched teeth. Harry levitated him up and grabbed a hold of his broom as well. He then soared away from the mountains and found an isolated spot right by the water. Harry took the nearest rock and transfigured it into a piece of cloth. He then dipped it in the water.

"We have to clean the wound," Harry said. "Can you extend your leg?"

Malfoy had beads of sweat on either side of his face. He slowly began stretching his leg out and he winced, shutting his eyes briefly.

"I wish there was some Dittany plant somewhere. That would help," Harry said. "Er, do you think – I need to get your pants off so that I can better see the wound."

Malfoy's eyes locked with his. His expression was one full of pain. He nodded curtly. Harry murmured a spell so the pants would inflate first. That way they wouldn't scrape against the wound. Then the pants unbuttoned and slipped off slowly. Malfoy had on his black boxers. The thorn was sticking out of the middle of his thigh. Harry approached it and examined it. The thorn was lodged in pretty deep. There was something strange about it. It almost appeared to be moving, as if it was alive. Harry swallowed. He reached out to touch it and the thorn sunk a tiny bit deeper.

Malfoy cried out. Harry backed his hand away.

"Okay. This thing is alive. We have to get it out."

The blond's eyes widened in terror. "Potter, do you even have any idea…," he trailed off, wincing, "what you're doing?"

"Just relax. I think the freezing charm worked. If I can freeze this piece, I can pull it out. You ready?"

Malfoy just shut his eyes. Harry breathed in deeply and he pointed the wand at the thorn. He was afraid if he said anything out loud the thorn would burrow deeper so he said the spell in his head. The thorn began to frost over and Harry did it quickly so the entire thing froze. Malfoy let out another cry. He probably felt the frost in his leg.

"Okay. I'm going to pull it out on the count of three."

Malfoy opened his eyes and nodded.

"One."

"OW! Bloody hell!" Malfoy screamed as Harry waved his wand and the thorn came out.

It fell down to the ground next to them and Malfoy clutched his bleeding thigh.

"You said on the count of three!"

"I lied. I didn't want you to be prepared for it."

"Clearly!" Malfoy exclaimed. He winced again.

"Okay. Hold still. I need to clean it."

Harry bent over Malfoy and forced him to lie down. He put the cold, wet cloth over the wound and Malfoy winced again. Harry put his hand on top of the cloth and kept it there for a minute.

"There might be some Dittany back at the house that will help with the pain, but we should at least clean it really well before we go back," Harry said. He turned his head to face Malfoy's and realized they were inches apart.

Malfoy gazed into his eyes. Harry suddenly felt nervous. The blond wasn't saying anything. He was just staring at him, breathing deeply.

"Does it feel better?" Harry asked finally.

Malfoy nodded slowly. "A bit. Still bloody hurts."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, I'll bet. I did not expect it to attack like that."

"Me either," Malfoy said.

The blond tried to move. Harry instinctively wrapped his arms around him quickly.

"You shouldn't try to get up yet."

Malfoy stared up at him. "Potter…," he trailed off.

"What?"

The blond paused. "Nothing. Nevermind."

"Why don't we stay here for a bit and let you rest before we head back. Here," Harry said, taking off his shirt. "We'll wrap your leg in this. I don't think I can transfigure something big enough so…"

He then wrapped his shirt around the cloth and Malfoy's wound, which had already bled through the cloth. He helped Malfoy by levitating him over to a rock he could lean up against.

Harry then sat down near him.

"How does your leg feel?" Harry asked, staring at the place he had just bandaged.

"It's fine," Malfoy said, shrugging. "Thanks for, er, you know, helping out."

"Of course. What, did you think I'd just leave you there?"

The blond rolled his eyes. "I didn't say that."

Harry just smiled. Malfoy opened his mouth then closed it.

"What?"

"It's nothing," Malfoy said.

"Come on, Malfoy. Something's on your mind. Just say it."

"It's not – I mean," Malfoy said, glancing away briefly. "I've just been confused about something."

"About what?"

"It's just…," Malfoy trailed off. "What happened after the Ministry and everything and you said that it was fine."

"Is that still bothering you?" Harry said. His heart started pounding harder. "I mean, I told you it was okay. It's not like I'm going to broadcast it everywhere."

"I know that. It's just – I don't know," Malfoy sighed heavily. "I guess I just assumed you'd hit me or something."

Harry smiled. "Well, I was a bit too stunned to do much of anything."

Malfoy snorted. They fell into a silence. Harry bit his lip.

"Er, can I ask you something?"

The blond gazed up at him. "What?"

"I know that you were drunk and everything but you said you didn't know the reason you kissed me. I mean, do you, you know, swing that way?"

Malfoy seemed a bit uncomfortable. He glanced at the lake briefly. "It's not exactly like that. I mean, I've…experimented."

Harry's throat constricted a bit but his curiosity got the better of him. "What do you mean? Like you dated a guy?"

The blond shrugged. "Sort of. Actually just snogging I guess."

"Oh," Harry said, glancing down at his feet. "So, are you…," Harry hesitated, taking a breath, "interested in me that way?"

Harry gazed up at Malfoy who was staring at him with wide eyes. The blond's gaze wavered and he stared out at the water.

He shrugged. "I don't know."

They fell into silence for a minute.

"You said you weren't close-minded before so does that mean you would date a guy, if you were interested?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know." Harry's stomach tightened and his heart rate increased. "Are you…asking if I would…er, date you?"

Malfoy gazed up at him and Harry felt his whole face flush. Their eyes locked for a minute. Since they were in such close proximity he could sense that Malfoy's curiosity peaked at the question.

Harry's entire body tensed. Malfoy was staring at him expectantly. Harry wasn't sure what to think. He wasn't even sure what he should feel. He liked Malfoy as a friend, but he couldn't see them being anything more. He would've never imagined them being friends either. He could feel the blond's anxiety and he didn't want to make it worse. He had to be calm and pretend like it wasn't a big deal, even though he was panicking on the inside. He had no idea what to do in situations like these.

"Er, it's not like I – you know – I've never been with a guy before, so…," Harry stumbled.

He could feel Malfoy's insecurity grow and the blond glanced down. He had been wringing his hands together nervously. Harry didn't know what to say. He honestly was just confused and uncertain, but he didn't want the blond to stop being his partner, or to leave Grimmauld Place.

Malfoy cleared his throat uncomfortably. "It's fine, let's drop the subject," he said quietly.

Harry's throat constricted again. His palms were sweaty now. He didn't want Malfoy to think he was uncomfortable with him. He was so frazzled, wanting to keep things okay between them, that what came out next was completely unexpected.

"It just – it depends on your intentions," Harry blurted out.

Malfoy raised his head in surprise. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "My intentions? What do you mean?"

Harry swallowed. What the hell _did_ he mean? He had to say something fast.

"Er," Harry said licking his lips. "If you're looking for…," Harry gestured, hesitating for a split second, "just sex, like a fling, I don't do that."

_I can't believe I just said that. _

He didn't think their conversations could get any more uncomfortable than after the Ministry Celebration, but he was wrong. Absolutely wrong. This was worse. His whole face was burning and he couldn't even look Malfoy in the eye. In his embarrassment he just kept talking.

"You know, I do the whole dating thing, and waiting until I know I'm serious about someone, and I know they're serious about me, before I…you know, go to the next level. That's just how I am. But it doesn't have to be awkward between us. If you want to go back to the way things were before, we can. It's no big deal," he said rather quickly.

He crossed his arms to hide his nervousness. He finally glanced back up at Malfoy who was staring at him looking taken aback.

"Potter, are you saying that I'm easy," Malfoy said, raising both eyebrows.

"What? Er, no, I'm not – it's just – I don't know how you are in relationships and there were rumors –"

"Rumors? What kind of rumors?" Malfoy asked, raising his voice in surprise.

"Er…you know, I guess that Hermione heard from Parvati who heard from Pansy that you were…uh…adventurous and that you kind of…got around."

"WHAT?!" Malfoy bellowed. "I'm going to kill her! She just made up crap like that just because I dumped her!"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "So it's not true?"

"No, it's not true! I asked Pansy to come with me to the dance just once, just because there wasn't anyone I was interested in. She was a friend and I thought it would okay. Then I realized she wanted more than friendship!" Malfoy exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "She came onto me really strongly, I said no, she got pissed, so then she – That bitch!"

Harry actually felt relieved that the rumors weren't true. Not that he should care about Malfoy's personal life. The blond finally calmed down.

"So, Potter, are you saying…you'd want to date?"

"Er, honestly, I don't know. I'm a bit confused about everything. I haven't even thought about relationships since Ginny," Harry said quickly.

"What happened with her? I thought you two were going to get married or something," Malfoy said.

Harry sighed. "It's complicated. At first it was nice being in a relationship but then after a while her mum was hinting at weddings and grandchildren and I think I just…"

"Got cold feet?" Malfoy said.

"It was more than that. I started realizing that as much as I love Ginny and the Weasleys, I just couldn't picture myself marrying her and having kids and all that. I just didn't have romantic feelings for her anymore. I had started to notice this after the war but when it ended I was just so thankful to be alive that I didn't really read the warning signs. I just followed Ginny's lead and tried to pick up where we left off and that just made it even more difficult. So I was kind of distancing myself from her and then she finally forced us into having a talk and it all sort of spilled out."

"I'll bet that went over great," Malfoy said, raising an eyebrow.

Harry gave him a look. "Yeah, great. I made her cry. Then Ron got all pissed at me, then Mrs. Weasley started crying because she had already been planning the wedding."

"Oh," Malfoy said, glancing down awkwardly. Harry could sense the blond felt bad for him.

"Yeah," Harry said, shaking his head. "Anyway. Everything's fine now. Everyone cooled down. We're still friends but we don't see each other that often."

Malfoy nodded. They both glanced away momentarily. Harry cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"So, I'm not sure…I mean, about us. I don't want to make things awkward between us since we live together and work together," Harry said nervously.

The blond was silent for a second. Then Malfoy crossed his arms. "Well, we could, you know, date and if it doesn't work out we can go back to how things were."

Malfoy glanced up at him and Harry didn't want him to see how stunned he was.

"Er, okay," Harry said. What the hell was he saying? He couldn't agree to that. "But I just want to be clear there will be no sex," he blurted out.

Malfoy slowly raised an eyebrow.

_Oh, Merlin…_

Harry wished he could be swallowed up by a tornado. Hurling winds tearing him apart sounded much more bearable than facing Malfoy after that.

"Er, I just don't do that with someone right away…" Harry trailed off.

Harry sat there awkwardly for a moment, not knowing what to say. "Er, are you feeling better to fly back or should we wait a bit longer?"

"I'm fine," Malfoy said, slowly standing up.

Harry nodded and helped Malfoy to his feet. They both got on their brooms but they went slowly. Harry glanced back at the blond a couple of times hoping that he wouldn't just fall off the broom. As they flew back in silence, Harry's mind was spinning. Their conversation felt so surreal he still wasn't sure it had really happened.

When they got back to the house, Malfoy was still limping a bit but he seemed fine.

"I'm going to take a shower and go to bed," Malfoy said.

"Yeah. If your leg looks worse in the morning, you should probably go to St. Mungo's."

Malfoy nodded. He then slowly headed toward the stairs.

"Er, you can use the fireplace down here to get to your room," Harry offered.

Malfoy turned and stared at him with wonder. "Really? You have Pink Floo Powder?"

"Yeah," Harry said, summoning it down from his room. He handed some to Malfoy who slowly walked over to the living room fireplace and threw it in. In a second, Malfoy vanished.

Harry walked quickly up to his room, shut the door and leaned his back against the door. He breathed out heavily and took a minute to process what happened. He had just agreed to date Malfoy. What the hell was wrong with him? He just desperately wanted the situation to be okay. He hadn't wanted to give Draco the impression that he liked him in that way. It was Malfoy of all people. They rarely got along and Harry already wasn't good at the whole relationship thing.

_It's okay. It's not permanent. Malfoy just said to try dating. I don't have to stay with him, or have sex with him. No, I definitely wouldn't do that! We'll just go out a couple times then I can just tell him I'm not feeling it or whatever. Or maybe he'll decide it's best if we just go back to the way things were before. _

Harry thought about for a minute. What did it mean if Malfoy actually wanted to date him? Was he serious, or just desperate and lonely?

"I've really made a mess of things," he muttered, rubbing his face with his hands.

TO BE CONTINUED…

To Reviewers: Thanks to everyone for taking the time to review! I now have a better idea of what you think of this story. Some of you gave me some great suggestions so thank you! I'm so glad you all are enjoying the story! I promise that everything you're curious about will be answered eventually. If you have any questions or suggestions, you can private message me or I will respond to it in a review comment (like below) in the next chapter.

***I will update shortly. It shouldn't be too long since I've already started on the next chapter. **

**HPmeghan7474: **I'm so glad you like how this is progressing! I know, I was just thinking about that before I had started this story. In every story Harry is the chaser and Malfoy is incredibly stubborn and opposed to it. So I'm doing something much different this time, although I still wanted the same feel-good effect as Captivation. Malfoy is still stubborn but considering how Harry saw him cry twice in the books, I felt as though he's more sensitive than he first appeared, especially after the war and everything. Yes, don't worry, the real relationship is finally starting! =)

**ASH.l.e.i.11: **Hey thanks! I'm so glad that you're looking forward to the next chapters! That makes me feel really happy. I try to improve my writing with each story I do and this is now the third Draco/Harry story I've written. I'm glad you find it unique too! Sometimes it's hard trying to find a plot that's fascinating but hasn't been done yet. Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like my descriptions and things. I do a lot of research on what was in the books so that way I can change it up, or mention things that J.K. Rowling created, and then it makes it easier to make up my own stuff. I do agree with you that I should keep things unique. J.K. Rowling's book (I didn't even realize this) had very ordinary things to eat like at Hogwarts and such. It's so much more fun making up weird foods and other things. So I will definitely keep that in mind! Glad you like the chemistry so far. The real relationship is finally starting! =)

**BabyKangaroo: **Thanks for reviewing! Glad you like it so far. Yeah, Harry is kind of being a knight, standing up to Malfoy and all. At the same time, they're both kind of supporting each other since they both keep helping and saving one another. I'm trying to keep it relatively balanced. They will find out who is trying to harm them. It's much more complicated than it seems. I put a few hints in but they're subtle so it will be much more obvious when you find out. =) I promise to continue to update as quickly as possible!

**Aurore Ambler: **Thank you for reviewing! =) Yeah, I was only feeling like it wasn't worthwhile to post just because I didn't even have one review for the last 2 chapters. It doesn't matter how many reviews I get, if it's just one that's enough! I just needed some kind of feedback. Apparently my ranting about that worked though. Everyone seems to be commenting now, which is great! I finally know how people feel about this story. Oh yes, you're welcome! I always do long chapters because it doesn't feel worth it to put up a chapter that doesn't have much in it. You will find out what Malfoy's hiding eventually, I promise! I will definitely update soon!

**Satin-skies:**Thanks for reviewing! Don't worry, I promise not to make you wait too long. After I wrote the 5th chapter, it took me a while to update just because I hadn't gotten any reviews and then I started studying for all my national exams. I'm on a break from studying and I'm finally getting some reviews so I know how people feel. =) I'm so happy to hear you love this story! That's my goal! I try to improve my writing with each story I do. My goal is to have this story be better than Captivation, if possible, lol! Oh yes, I always pace out the romance because I can't read my own writing or enjoy writing it if it's not believable. So sometimes it might take a while for the real romance to develop, but they're getting closer and closer. And now finally the real relationship can start. I will update ASAP!

**Kira Deadsoul: **Hey Kira! Thanks so much for reviewing. I'm so glad you like the story so far! Awww, thanks for saying my writing is good. I try to improve with each story I do. Sometimes I get a little carried away with details. Oh yes, it's fun when your characters are oblivious to what's going to happen, but that's what makes for the mystery. I love mysteries so I have to have that in my stories. Also, hopefully it's suspenseful enough for you. Things definitely won't go their way all the time. And in terms of consequences, oh yes. There will be consequences for everything (_*hint*_ potions). =) Thanks again! I will update shortly!

**Missy Padfoot: **Hey Missy! It's so nice to hear from you again! I know it's been a while. I've been studying for my national exams but I finally get a break. Aww, it's okay, thank you. Yeah, I hadn't gotten even one review for chapters 3, 4, and 6. I just needed some sort of feedback. I don't need a lot of reviews, just something. Glad to know that you like this story! It's hard to try to write something better than Captivation, but that's my goal! =) I'm so glad Captivation is one of your favorites! That's why I like my stories to be nice and long so that people can go back and enjoy them again. I couldn't let go of Captivation for a bit so that's why I did those 2 one-shots. But then I decided to start a whole other story. So I hope you like this one at least as much! I'm so glad the relationship feels believable to you. It's different for me this time because Harry isn't really the chaser and Malfoy is a little less stubborn and mean than in Captivation/Pure Rhapsody. So I still want it to be believable, but they get together in different ways. So hopefully this chapter was believable. Yeah, I love Malfoy's obnoxious attitude and the remarks he makes sometimes. It's fun to write, lol! But I figured it would be believable if he wasn't too stubborn this time around, or too insensitive. After remembering that Harry saw Malfoy crying twice and how the blond didn't want to be a part of Voldemort's league, I realized he's more sensitive than how he first appears. So I'm playing with the more sensitive Draco this time around. He will still be an obnoxious ass though, so no worries!

Yes, I felt bad for Harry too always being the one taking initiative so this time I'm giving him a break, lol! Hopefully later on as you see Harry's feelings develop, they will be believable. In this story it's not going to be so one-sided, but it's still going to be difficult for them to overcome their differences and insecurities. Certain things will help them come together though. I have a lot planned for them!

Thanks so much for pointing that out about the Herbology stuff being dry. I will try to be less overwhelming with all the Herbology info from now on. I get a little carried away when I make up stuff sometimes. I put in so much detail because I want it to be believable, but I sometimes forget that you don't always need a lot of detail. The assignments are essential to help start their relationship, but it won't be so overwhelming from now on. It mostly was detailed in the others because they still weren't friends yet so their teamwork on assignments was really important, like the last trip they had. However, from here on out it won't be so bad, promise!

I'm glad you like their careers so far! I thought it was unexpected and fascinating. We don't learn a lot about Herbology in the books so I thought I'd explore it a bit. Oh don't worry there's still going to be a love triangle-type things. I'm sure it's obvious that Cyprian is jealous. He isn't ugly though so maybe I should describe him better. And he does get a little better the next times you see him. You can kind of tell from this chapter that he is better once Harry is interacting with him more. When his jealousy takes over (*hint*), he gets all whacked out. He is obnoxious at times though, lol! There were still be jealousies so don't worry. I definitely won't give up on this! I will update shortly! Thanks again! =)

**Circe wyrmbrandt****: **Thanks! I'm so glad you like it so far. I'm glad you find it funny too. That's my goal! I love putting comic moments in. That's why Malfoy's character is so fun because he's such an ass sometimes. I want it to be a feel-good type story, but also suspenseful. Thanks for reviewing!

**Guest: **Thanks for reviewing! I will definitely continue. I don't like leaving stories unfinished. I just wanted to let people know I needed at least some sort of feedback. I got much more than I was expecting, which is really nice. You will definitely find out who's after them eventually, and what Draco is up to. I won't spoil anything in terms of you wanting to know if Malfoy finds out about what Harry is doing (taking the potion). I will just say that your question will be answered eventually. =) I will update shortly!

**Ruby Silken Sun: **Thanks for the suggestions about the geography. I will have to go back and change that at some point. Glad you like the story! Thanks again for taking the time to review! =)

**DeiStarr: **Thanks! I'm so glad you like this! Aww, thanks for offering to review each chapter. So long as I'm getting some feedback that's enough for me. And I'm glad you think that Harry's job is a unique concept. I figured that there must be people - like scientists in the muggle world - that research the wizard world. Yeah, writing some of the interactions between Harry and Draco is really fun! Especially with Draco's snarky attitude, lol! Don't worry the romance is starting! I will update ASAP!

**JUST-A-DEVIL**: Thanks so much! I'm so glad you like it so far! Awww, that's sweet of you to say! I'm glad I can make someone speechless. I'm trying really hard to make this the best story I've written so far. It's been a few years since I've really worked on fanfiction so I'm hoping to see improvements. =) Yes, thank you, I will definitely keep writing! Even though I was thinking about not posting for a while, if I didn't get reviews, it would be really hard for me to stop. This story is really fun to write. I just wanted to motivate people to just leave one or two messages so that I had some idea of what people were thinking. I got way more reviews than I was expecting so I'm beyond happy. So thank you! I will update asap!

**Chessa: **Oh yay! Thanks so much! I'm so glad you really like this! Yeah, I'm a slow author sometimes. I like to write things that seem believable so if I go too fast then I don't like my own story and I get frustrated. So that's why my chapters are so long and I usually write about 30 chapters in a story. Yay! That was my goal was for this to be a good-feel fic but also be really suspenseful. I have a lot of suspense planned for them! And I hope the climax will be worth it! The romance is definitely starting to develop and you will find out about who sent the Inferi attack and such eventually, but yes it's building up slowly. I threw in some hints but I think they're too subtle for people to figure out. Once you find out the hints will be more noticeable. =) I definitely won't leave this unfinished! Honestly, even if I hadn't gotten reviews I probably would've continued anyway because it's fun to write. I was just trying to motivate the people following but not reviewing to just let me know what they think. I got way more reviews than expected! I only need one or two per chapter to just let me know your reaction. So I will update shortly! Thanks again!


	9. Seeds of Change

_**Luminescence**_

_Story Note:_ The romance will be coming shortly, no worries! =) Starting next chapter _(*hint*)._

**Chapter 8: Seeds of Change**

When Harry woke up the next morning he was extremely groggy. He hadn't been able to sleep well yet again. At first he thought maybe he had dreamt the whole thing about agreeing to date Malfoy. Then he turned his head and stared at the vial on his bureau that held the bloody thorn from the plant. The thorn wasn't throbbing anymore after he froze the piece of it. It had shriveled up, which meant they probably hadn't succeeded after all. They would most likely have to go back and get a live piece.

Then Harry sat up. He hoped Malfoy was okay. He suddenly pictured Malfoy turning blue in his bed. He rushed downstairs still clad in only his comfortable gray pajama pants. When he realized Malfoy wasn't in the kitchen, he went into the living room, but he wasn't there either. So Harry ran back up the stairs to the top floor. Taking in a deep breath, he knocked on the door. There wasn't an answer. His heart started to race. He knocked again.

"Malfoy?"

He heard a soft voice grumbling but couldn't understand it. He opened the door and peered inside. Malfoy's head lifted from the bed.

"Hey, are you feeling okay?"

Malfoy stared at him and then he smirked. "Why, are you worried about me?"

Harry gave him an annoyed look. "Just making sure you're not feeling worse than before because I've got some bad news."

Malfoy groaned and pushed his messy bangs out of his face. "Great. What is it?"

"The thorn we pulled out of you – well, since I had to freeze it, it withered. So…"

"Don't tell me we have to go back and deal with that thing!" Malfoy exclaimed.

"Unfortunately, yes. But I think it's best if we wait until your leg has healed more. How does it look?"

Sighing, Malfoy kicked the covers off and Harry flushed when he saw he was only clad in his boxers again. He had seen Malfoy several times already in his boxers but he still couldn't get used to it. Harry walked over to the bed. Malfoy untied Harry's now bloodied shirt from the wound. There was a deep gash where the thorn had gone in, but otherwise it had stopped bleeding.

"Well, it doesn't look infected or anything," Harry said, leaning forward. "Can you walk okay?"

Malfoy slowly turned and slid out of the bed. He winced. "Not really."

Harry nodded. "Okay. Maybe we'll wait a couple days before we go then."

"Fine with me," Malfoy grumbled. "But when we do see it again, I've got unfinished business with it."

Harry snorted. "We kind of need it alive, Malfoy."

Shrugging, the blond limped over to his trunk.

"Er, I'll go see if I can find some Dittany."

Malfoy nodded. He didn't open his trunk and seemed to be waiting for Harry to leave. Harry went up to the attic. He hadn't been there since Buckbeak and Sirius were there. Thinking of Sirius still brought back a painful twinge. He went over to where there was a storage cabinet and opened it. He remembered Sirius telling him there were still some old ingredients and other things up in the attic. He searched through the cabinet. In the back there was an old Dittany vial, the same stuff Hermione used for emergencies: Essence of Dittany. It was dusty, but there was half a bottle left.

Harry knocked on Malfoy's door minutes later.

"Come in."

Harry came in holding the vial and Malfoy stood. He was lying in the bed again, resting. Thankfully he had the sheet over him.

"Er, here's some Dittany."

He handed it to Malfoy who nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem," Harry said.

He turned to leave.

"Hey," Malfoy said, as Harry turned around. "When we finally get this thing, we need to go out and celebrate. This one's surprisingly worse than the Venomous Tentacula."

Harry smiled. "Yeah. Well, you should take it easy today."

"Yep, that's what I'm doing," Malfoy said, leaning back against his pillows.

Harry raised an eyebrow in amusement. Clearly the blond felt fine. He then turned around heading for the door.

"Say, Potter," Malfoy said. Harry turned again. "I'm surprised that you didn't follow through."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "With what?"

Malfoy smirked. "Remember when you got attacked by the Grindelow on our second assignment?"

He did remember. Malfoy had told him he wasn't dying and that he'd be fine.

"I distinctly remember you saying you would remember that if I ever got injured."

Harry stared at him in annoyance. "Fine. How's this? You'll live, Malfoy. There, happy?"

Malfoy just smirked. Harry then turned and left the room. Harry stopped mid-step as he was going down the stairs. If Malfoy was stuck at home for the day, Harry could go check out the Archives. He wasn't sure when or if he'd ever have a dream about it again and he was too impatient to wait.

He didn't even bother to eat breakfast first. He flew over to the Hellebore building. Glancing around, he was relieved to not see Cyprian anywhere. He went up to the Archives room and slipped inside. He glanced around to make sure no one was in there before proceeding to the back of the room.

"Revilus" Harry whispered. He remembered the words Malfoy had used.

The doorway appeared and Harry stepped inside. He gazed around at the shelves of old books and other items. It wasn't just a bookshelf room after all. There were old pendants, wands (some of which looked broken), items that he didn't recognize. He remembered seeing Malfoy walk over to the backside of the bookshelf near the back. Harry did the same thing and stared at the rows of books.

He sighed. _How the hell am I supposed to know what he looked at?_

It seemed impossible. Still, since he was there, Harry pulled out one of the books. It was about prophecies. Glaring at the book, he put it back. He stared at all the titles. Only three really stood out to him: _Ancient Myths and Legends: A Dark Mystery, Vampires: Threat or Nuisance?_and _Legendary Creatures of Old._Harry picked up the vampire book and flipped through it. He skimmed a couple pages. It didn't make sense that Malfoy would need to look up vampires. It wasn't like he was going to look for one; he hoped. Sighing, he put the book back. This was pointless. He grabbed the _Legendary Creatures of Old_ book and flipped through that. There were some moving pictures of some creatures. One of them he suspected was an Ogre, an ancestor of Giants. Harry suddenly stopped when something caught his eye. One of the pages was glimmering. Harry turned toward the page. He stared at it closely. The entire page was glimmering. None of the other pages were. It was very subtle, like looking at shiny paper. It seemed to go in and out a bit, which was what really caught his attention.

Harry looked at the page. It was about the rare and legendary Onyx Dragon. There was no picture of it. He skimmed the page. It basically said this dragon had only been seen a few times dating back to even before Merlin's time. It's known as the Eldest Dragon because it was one of the first dragons ever born. Some still think this miraculous creature with golden eyes and white flames is still around somewhere. It's said that they found a place to hide where humans, wizard and muggle alike, don't dwell. Some have speculated this creature hides in the Vasyuganor swamps in western Siberia or the vast mountains of Tasmania in Australia or possibly in the snowy range of The Latium Mountains in Italy. A couple decades ago black shadows in the night sky were spotted a couple times in the Alaskan mountains.

Harry flipped the pages. Nothing else glimmered. Curiously, he grabbed the other book Ancient Myths and Legends. He flipped through and noticed a page was glimmering in that book. He flipped to it. It was called "A Herbologist's Nightmare: A Plant-Beast Hybrid".

He began to skim the material. There was a supposedly dangerous, but currently mythical plant. It's said to be able to take the form of anything, which is why it hasn't been concretely spotted or tested. One man claimed he saw a tree turn into a flower bush. Harry read the last section of the page.

"_An unfortunate event that will forever haunt the lives of Herbologists everywhere. A witch supposedly encountered this massive plant-beast hybrid. She used a spell to record everything that was happening with her wand. This creature she described as not being solely a plant. It could change colors, and even shape. It could force flowers to bloom from its back. It looked like it would be a huge tree with long feather-shaped leaves all over its body. These were like shiny furless feathers. When it stretched out is body, it was apparently 7 feet tall. There was a pair of white eyes that stared out from the tip as it bent down toward her. The head part that came out with the eyes also had a mouth described as large and expanding, like a snake's jaw with layers of little black sharp teeth. It apparently also had long bony legs covered in spikes with sharp claws at the ends. She had just enough time to describe it before her screams echoed in the recording. The creature's screech was like that of a piercing howling wind. It was like nothing anyone had ever heard before, or even to this day._

"_It apparently devoured her, leaving behind a shard of what could've been a piece of a black tooth, but no one to this day knows for sure. What was clear was her wand which was left intact with the recording. Investigations into this as well as a high alert from the Ministry at that time came up with no leads. The strangest part was that there were no tracks, no drag marks, no claw marks of any kind, nothing to suggest how the plant-monster-hybrid got away. If what she said was accurate, it could prove to be the most powerful plant in history and maybe even more powerful than some beasts like the Kappa Demon. According to her brief description, it was still more plant than beast-like, but had beast-like properties. Perhaps this creature has unheard-of potential for potion making. If it was real, I'm sure that it would indeed prove to have great discoveries._

Harry closed the book. A plant-hybrid. That was more suspicious especially with the type of work they did. He reached out for another random book and flipped through it. There were no glimmering pages.

"The potion," Harry whispered aloud.

Shoving the books back on the shelf, Harry left the Archives room. He went back down the elevator and nearly lost his balance when he saw Ron and Cyprian walking down the hall together. They were talking about something. Harry felt his entire body freeze. His throat constricted as Ron's eyes met his.

"Harry!" Ron exclaimed. "What a pleasant surprise. I was just going to leave an owl for you here."

Harry remembered he talked with Ron about not coming over to Grimmauld Place so he probably figured that owling Harry there wasn't safe either. Ron and Hermione were the only other ones that knew the correct location and password to get in.

"Er, hey. What's going on?"

"I was telling Cyprian about the Quidditch champtionships coming up next weekend. We're having a celebration at my house while watching the game. We couldn't get tickets to the live game this year, but my dad just purchased a fancy Quidditch charm made by the World Cup broadcasters themselves. It's a permanent charm that allows you to take any wall in the house and be able to watch the game live! I invited you but I thought since I bumped into Cyprian to invite him also."

Cyprian grinned. "I'm not usually a Quidditch person but it sounds fun."

"I invited Hermione too so hopefully she can make it," Ron said, smiling.

"Oh, er, yeah that sounds good."

"Great!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry felt guilty. Malfoy was the one being excluded. Even if he told Ron about Malfoy being his partner now, he wouldn't be able to explain having the urge to invite him.

"I'll see you both next weekend. I'm sure I'll see you soon, Harry. Let me know when you're free for a game of Quidditch with Ginny, George and Bill."

Harry nodded. "Okay. I will. See you."

Ron walked toward the entrance and Cyprian turned and smiled at Harry.

"That should be fun. I really like Ron. I can see why he's your best friend."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, thanks. I'm sorry, I should get going. There's this assignment that, er, didn't go very well so we're doing another take."

"Oh, well good luck then," Cyprian said. His gaze lingered for a second before he smiled and waved goodbye.

Harry waved back. Cyprian disappeared up the elevator and Harry hurried out of the building. Cyprian didn't seem bad to hang out with but it just wasn't the same as with Ron or even Malfoy. He didn't think he had anything in common with Cyprian.

When he went back to the house, Malfoy wasn't downstairs. He must have still been up in his room resting.

Harry made some lunch for himself and then decided to finish brewing Snape's potion. It took several hours and by that time it was dinner. He had to let the rest of the potion cool after combining it with the half he had done previously. It only needed a couple days to cool. Still, he wasn't sure what he should try it out on.

At dinner, Malfoy came downstairs. He wasn't limping, but he still looked irritated.

"Do you feel better?" Harry asked.

Malfoy shrugged. "Yeah. I'm fine. The Dittany helped a lot. We can finish that assignment tomorrow."

"Er, you sure?" Harry asked, sitting down on the couch with his butterbeer.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I'm going to pay that plant back big time," he said coolly. "Besides, it beats sitting around the house. I don't do well sitting around."

"I've noticed that," Harry retorted.

Malfoy gave him a look. "What have you been doing?"

Instantly, he thought of him and Cyprian being invited to Ron's Quidditch night. He felt his stomach tighten.

"Er, not much. Just ran some errands. Had to, er, brew some more of my eyesight potion."

Malfoy snorted. "Sounds like a good time, Potter."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well it beats laying in bed all day."

The blond's eyes narrowed. He took a swig of his butterbeer. Harry glanced at him while he wasn't paying attention. He swallowed nervously. Malfoy must've remembered what they talked about the previous night. Thankfully, he hadn't mentioned it since, probably because he was too busy recuperating. Harry licked his lips nervously. Maybe Malfoy would just forget that conversation ever happened. He was pretty miserable and in a lot of pain. Maybe he hadn't been thinking clearly. However, mentioning Pansy the other night got Harry thinking about whether or not Malfoy was still in touch with some old friends. He shuddered at the thought.

"I can't wait for this assignment to be over," Malfoy said, rubbing his forehead.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, me too. It's the most aggressive plant we've come across so far. How do you think we should capture it?"

Malfoy took a bite of his meal. "Hmm. I don't know. We could use you as bait."

Harry glared at him in annoyance. "Hilarious. How about we use you as bait? You did a great job drawing it out last time."

The blond shook his head as he stared up at the ceiling. He draped an arm over his head. "Real clever, Potter."

Harry was silent for a few seconds. "Well, bait might not be such a bad idea."

Malfoy sat up on the couch staring at him incredulously. "You better be joking, Potter! Because if anyone's going to be bait, it's you."

"I don't trust you, Malfoy. I was barely able to react to that plant and I don't want to rely on your reflexes."

"What the hell is wrong with my reflexes? They're probably better than yours!"

Harry rubbed his temple. "Whatever. Look. All we really have to do is use that thorn piece as bait. I'm sure that the plant would still be able to recognize a piece of itself and it might get angry enough to attack."

"Oh, great," Malfoy muttered.

"This time we'll be prepared. We'll have to set up a live trap just long enough to hold it down so we can cut off a thorn and preserve it. If we use a freezing charm again it will be destroyed. And I'm sure the same would happen if we used a fire charm too. I think the best approach is to cut off a thorn with a knife."

"What if that doesn't work? What if the thorn dies again? We can't take that thing back to Hellebore."

"Good point. There must be a reason it needs the plant. Maybe some sort of nutrients feeds the thorn part of it. I suppose we could cut off a section of the plant with a thorn and then try to keep the whole thing alive. If the thorn needs the plant, we can take a piece of the plant. Then to keep the plant piece alive we'll have a vial full of water."

Malfoy shrugged. "It's worth a shot."

They fell into silence. Harry felt awkward there. He wanted to treat it like any other night that they were having dinner, but after their conversation the previous night he was afraid that Malfoy would bring it up again. Harry was already regretting what he said. He didn't even know why he said what he did. He didn't like guys! Even if Malfoy did like guys and was interested in him, there was no way Harry could date a guy, especially not one who was a Slytherin and former Death Eater. He glanced over at Malfoy who was calmly sipping his drink. The blond didn't seem like he had been a Death Eater. In fact, he wasn't even as horrible as he used to be when he was younger.

Harry quickly looked away before Malfoy noticed he was staring. Slowly, he got up. Malfoy turned his head.

"Er, I'm going to bed. I'm tired."

Malfoy shrugged. "Are you still not sleeping?"

Harry turned, surprised. "Er, not real well."

"Have you used a sleep potion?"

Harry's heartbeat increased. "Er, yeah, but it didn't help much."

Malfoy nodded. "You just need to get wasted every night, Potter."

"Oh, right," Harry said, rolling his eyes. "Alcoholism is the solution."

The blond snorted in response. Harry watched as the blond downed the rest of his butterbeer.

"Er….don't drink too much. You need to be in top shape for tomorrow."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Seriously, Potter?"

"Yes, seriously. If you're off your game even a little – "

"Relax, Potter," Malfoy drawled. "It will take much more than two butterbeers to get me drunk. I'll be ready."

He relaxed his shoulders a bit. His heart was pounding. Secretly, he just didn't want to see any more of Malfoy's dreams. He was afraid of what he might dream of next.

"You better," he said. "I'm going to bed."

The blond made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat. Harry went upstairs and sighed heavily. He waited until it was around 11 before he crept to the library to look in the hidden room again. Nowhere did it say anything about seeing glimmering pages. He wasn't sure if those pages were glimmering because that's how they were made, or because Malfoy was looking at them. He was pretty much back at square one now.

_I have to get into his trunk!_

He glanced at Snape's potion as it sat idly on his desk in the vial container. It was still cooling and was still a dark cobalt blue. It had to turn violet in the next couple days if it was done properly.

He collapsed into bed. He hoped he wouldn't see any more of Malfoy's memories too. Although Harry was intrigued because it helped him figure out things about the blond he would've never known otherwise, he was too exhausted. He just wanted to sleep normally. He was almost positive that the Astringo potion was to blame for his feeling tired all the time. Whenever he saw Malfoy's dreams or memories, he probably wasn't actually sleeping. So long as Malfoy hadn't drunk any more butterbeers before bed, he most likely wouldn't see any dreams. Sighing, he rolled over and buried his face in his pillow.

_He was approaching the doors to Malfoy Manor. It was dark outside and the wind was howling. He could see there were no lights on inside. However, standing guard outside the entrance stood two Aurors. Instead of going toward the front entrance, he was now walking swiftly toward the back of the mansion. There was only one Auror in back who was standing by a window, not facing the direction of the corner of the house he was standing. In the back of the house there was a very, very tiny impossible-to-notice dot on one of the bricks. Pressing it and murmuring "Draken the Pureblood" opened a doorway through the brick wall. It was a small doorway. He hesitated making sure the Auror didn't turn before he slipped inside._

_Inside the doorway shut and the wall was back to normal, looking as though there had never been a doorway. He could hear Malfoy murmuring a spell and suddenly he had night vision. That way no lights had to be turned on. He crept quietly across the storage room past a number of old coats and brooms. The hallway was dark. He was focused on one thing – the stairs. Climbing up them slowly, he got to the third floor and made his way down the hall. There was a family portrait of Lucius, Narcissa and Draco, probably age 14 or 15, hanging on the wall. Reaching out a hand, he pushed in the family ring on Lucius' finger and turned it several times back and forth in a specific pattern. The wall moved aside and there were more narrow stairs to climb._

_There was a small attic atop the stairs. There wasn't much in the room. There was a rug on the floor and a couple cabinets that were empty. Murmuring a disillusion spell, another portrait appeared of Salazar Slytherin. His black eyes glared out of the portrait. He pressed certain things on the portrait, such as his right eye, then left hand, then the snake's head that was wrapped around his arm, then his wand, then his ring, and then his mouth. The mouth curled into a smirk and the portrait swung open. Inside was a metal black chest with a password lock on it._

_After murmuring Salazar the Great, Voldemort the Invincible, Purebloods above all, the chest unlocked. There was a small click and then it opened. He couldn't see what was inside because Malfoy had suddenly stopped moving. He heard footsteps. He held his breath. After a couple minutes, he quickly pulled out a cloth from his pocket, wrapped something from the chest inside of it, and shrunk it down with his wand so it fit in his pocket._

_Very cautiously, he put everything back the way it was and even slipped something inside of the chest to replace whatever had been taken. He then waved his wand to make it more difficult for someone to trace what he had done. Slowly, he crept back down the stairs and listened at the door. There was silence. He carefully pressed the crevice in the wall and the doorway to the secret attic opened. He slipped out quietly looking both ways. Suddenly, he heard footsteps again. The secret passage closed and he pressed himself in a dark corner, holding his breath. The footsteps were coming from the second floor beneath. A robed figure with a hood up passed by quickly, too quickly to really make out. He was still holding his breath._

_Finally, once the figure was out of sight, he crept down the stairs slowly. He then made his way to the back of the house again. First, he peered out the window. The Auror was still there so he waited until his face was turned before he opened the passage to outside. He then slipped around the corner unnoticed and disappeared into the night._

Harry jolted up in bed, gasping. He blinked several times to adjust to the darkness. It had been another of Malfoy's memories. He had snuck into Malfoy Manor while it was being guarded by Aurors, since Narcissa was on House Arrest, and he took something. Something that was very well hidden. Something that the Aurors hadn't discovered, at least not yet. Did Malfoy grab it to protect his parents? What would be so important to take out of such a secure location if not to make sure the Aurors guarding the place didn't find it? Perhaps what he had taken was hidden in his trunk.

Rubbing his eyes, Harry decided to go downstairs. He wanted to take a shower, but it made no sense since they were going on an assignment. He got dressed and went downstairs to get some breakfast. Malfoy wasn't down yet, but came down while Harry was eating.

Malfoy stopped in the kitchen and stared at him, raising his eyebrows slowly.

"Wow, Potter. Still not getting sleep, huh?"

Harry glared at him. It wasn't very effective considering how sleepy he was.

_It's not my fault I keep getting sucked into your head. Maybe that potion wasn't a great idea._

"Shut-up," he grumbled.

Malfoy's lips curled into a wide smirk. "Considering that your reflexes will be off, I think it's safe to say we'll be using you as bait."

He inwardly cursed, remembering their argument about who should be bait.

"Fine. Whatever. Just be ready."

"Obviously," Malfoy drawled.

Harry studied the blond as he walked past to get some food out of the fridge. He was acting normal. It wasn't like anything seemed to change between them. Maybe Malfoy really did regret suggesting they date and was pretending it never happened. If Harry got through all of the sneaking and spying around Malfoy, secretly pretending to like and be friends with Cyprian more than he actually was, and hiding everything regarding Malfoy from his best friends, _without_ it blowing up in his face, it would be a miracle.

Malfoy went into the living room to eat since he loved lounging on the couch while doing so. After twenty minutes where Harry sat in the kitchen finishing up his meal and thinking about the best way to draw the plant out, Malfoy came in again.

"Let's go, Potter. I want to get this assignment over with."

"You always want to get the assignments over with," Harry said, rolling his eyes. "But I want this one over with too. I'm counting on you to be responsible for my life here, Malfoy."

"Oh joy," Malfoy retorted.

They left the house and flew to the same area as before, only this time with a better plan in place. Harry had the dead thorn with him and he was hoping to lure it out of hiding. He hovered over the same area it had come out before. He hovered there for ten minutes on his broom levitating the thorn out in front of him. Malfoy was hovering a distance away with his wand ready.

"Maybe it moved to a different spot," Harry said.

Malfoy sighed irritably. "Maybe. Or maybe it's waiting for us to be distracted."

Glaring at him, Harry turned back to looking at the ground. He was only three feet above it, which was disconcerting already, on top of which he was relying on Malfoy to save him. If he would've known he'd be in a situation where his life depended on Malfoy, he would've laughed at the cruel irony. At the moment he felt more like throwing a rock at Malfoy.

After ten more minutes passed, Harry became impatient.

"Malfoy, it's not coming," he said, resting his arm. "We need a new plan."

The blond slowly lowered his wand and then crossed his arms. "Well, what then, Potter?"

"Maybe…er, we could put the thorn directly on the ground, but have a trap set up, like a sticky charm, so that when it tries to touch it, it will get the charm's effect."

"So, once it's stuck and can't move we can cut a thorn," Malfoy finished.

Harry nodded. "It's worth a shot. The only way for it to work is if we're slightly farther away so it can't sense us near the thorn."

Malfoy sighed. "All right."

He flew over to Harry and they both determined a good place to put the thorn on the ground. Harry figured the plant might remember being taken by surprise in the same spot, so they chose an area nearby. Harry charmed the thorn after it was placed on the ground. Malfoy charmed two nearby bushes which barely reached a foot off the ground. Then they both hid behind a large rock. It was the same rock that Harry had helped Malfoy lean against when he was injured. They both had their wands ready.

They kept their eyes on it. Harry felt Malfoy's arm move and it brushed against his shoulder. He tried not to look. He needed to stay focused. Nothing was happening.

Malfoy exhaled loudly. "Where the bloody hell is that thing?"

"Shh!" Harry exclaimed, turning his head slightly.

Their faces were a few inches apart. Harry felt his face heat up a bit. He quickly turned his gaze back. Harry bit his lip. He wondered if he should at least tell Malfoy that he might be going to watch Quidditch at Ron's house. He knew Malfoy disliked Ron greatly so he doubted he'd want to come. Still, he wondered if he would be upset that Cyprian got invited.

"I see something!" Malfoy hissed softly.

Harry's body jerked and he elbowed Malfoy's shoulder. "Sorry," he muttered.

The blond glanced at him. He snorted softly. They both looked out to see the ground moving. Harry's body tensed. The ground shook closer and closer to the thorn. Then suddenly stopped. Harry's eyes narrowed. He gestured to Malfoy that he was going in to check it out. He was opting to be bait himself hoping that Malfoy knew what he was doing. Slowly, Harry stepped on the ground and began walking. He stopped five feet away from the thorn and waited. He stared at the ground waiting for something to pop out. The ground was still and he didn't hear any sign that the plant was getting ready to bounce.

Just then the ground beneath his feet began to crumble. Harry made a sound of surprise as a hole appeared, just as his feet were beginning to sink, and a large purple flower-shaped mouth appeared, hissing. Before it could lock its flower-mouth on him, he was suddenly thrown up and away. Harry gasped as his body went flying as if he took one large leap and then landed softly by one of the bushes that Malfoy had charmed. He glanced up to see Malfoy with his wand out. He had definitely saved him. The plant took the bait and dug in the ground heading straight for Harry. It had completely bypassed the thorn. Harry reached for his wand, but before he could do anything, the plant got close enough to the charmed bush Harry was standing by. The bush reached and expanded creating a shield in front of him and swallowing half the plant's body.

The plant began hissing and squirming to get out. It was then Harry realized this plant had more than one tentacle. All of a sudden the ground was moving in three other areas right by him. Harry took a risk and jumped over by the thorn. He knew he wasn't as protected but he had to trap it. The ground shook as it tore through to get to him. All three trails were headed for him and he waited, tensed and ready. A hole appeared almost simultaneously as he was ambushed by three more purple flower-shaped mouths. Harry did the only thing he could. He grabbed the thorn and when the plant wrapped tightly around his body the charm reacted on them all. Harry felt his hands and knees glue to the ground. The three mouths that had been after him were hissing as they attempted to rise from their glued position on the ground. One of them was still wrapped around Harry's ankle and snapping, but it couldn't raise its mouth enough to get him because one petal part of its mouth was stuck to the ground. It thrashed angrily. Harry sighed with relief.

He gazed up to see Malfoy rushing over.

"Hurry and get a sample!" Harry exclaimed. "I don't know how long the charm will last with it thrashing like this."

Malfoy approached the tentacle that had the thorn pulsing and ready to attack. He used his wand to keep it steady so it wouldn't thrash.

"Crap! Do you have the vial?"

Harry's heart nearly stopped. He tried to move his hands but couldn't. "Er, yeah. It's in my pocket."

Since his wand was on one of the tentacles, Malfoy kneeled down and reached out his free hand toward him. Harry felt the blond's fingers brush up against his hip. His heart pounded as Malfoy's fingers found the entrance to his pocket and pushed in. He could feel the pressure between his hip and pelvic region. As the fingers dug down further into the pocket and grasped the vial, Harry felt as though they weren't moving fast enough. He felt his ears burn as Malfoy's fingers trailed back up his hip and out of his pocket. It felt like it had been several minutes that Malfoy was in his pocket, but it couldn't have been more than a minute.

"Malfoy, make sure to get a large piece with the mouth attached."

"What?! Are you insane, Potter?"

"It's possible that the mouth is what feeds the thorn. We may need the mouth in order to keep the thorn alive so – just do it and stop arguing with me!" Harry snapped.

Malfoy muttered something under his breath and then quickly said the slicing spell. The snapping mouth as well as the thorn came off. He then expanded the vial with his wand to fit both pieces which were almost a half a foot in length.

"There!" he exclaimed.

Harry felt the plant's grip on his ankle tighten. "Malfoy, I think it's getting loose."

Malfoy stood up and Harry inclined his head. The blond was smirk and it widened as he raised his wand.

"Payback's a bitch."

With that he said the freeze charm loudly and the entire plant and all its tentacles began to frost over. Within a matter of seconds it stopped thrashing and hissing. Harry could feel the cold sting by his ankle. The sticking charm was wearing off but Harry still couldn't move much so Malfoy reversed the charm. Harry shook his leg and the piece wrapped around his ankle shattered. Harry stood up and stared at the frozen remains. The entire plant was connected, all of its tentacles and mouths. Even the part that had been captured by Malfoy's bush spell had frozen and was obviously dead.

"Well, I feel better," Malfoy said proudly. He stared at the large vial full of water with the thrashing plant piece.

Harry snorted. "We better get it over to Dimitri now before it dies. I don't know how long it will survive in there."

Malfoy pocketed the vial and summoned his broom. Harry did as well. Malfoy turned and glanced over his shoulder as they were taking off.

"See, Potter, my reflexes were just fine."

"Yeah, yeah, they were fine," Harry said.

Malfoy's smirk widened.

"What?" Harry asked, annoyed.

"You owe me."

"No. I distinctly remember saving you last time when you were attacked. So we're even again."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Whatever. This is still my victory."

"Oh, right, and I did nothing except lure the plant and use my body as bait. It wasn't fun being glued to the ground, you know," Harry said. He glared at Malfoy as they flew over the trees and toward the Hellebore building.

Malfoy just smirked in response. They got to the building and Harry noticed as they approached the elevator that an envelope with wings was soaring behind him. It floated into the elevator with him and hovered by his shoulder.

Being there made him remember what he had read in the Archives room. He had a strange feeling it was the potion that caused those pages to shimmer. Even if Malfoy had read those pages, what was the significance?

"Huh?" Harry said, breaking out of his thoughts.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Deep in thought there, Potter? Don't hurt your brain too much."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "That should be my line."

The blond just shrugged and leaned back against the elevator. He was clearly proud of himself. Harry was never going to hear the end of it. The doors opened and they walked out. The envelope seemed to follow them all the way to Dimitri's office.

"Maybe it's for Dimitri," Harry said as they came to the door.

Malfoy shrugged nonchalantly.

They walked inside to see Dimitri sitting at his desk going over some papers, many of which were floating in the air.

"Ah, Harry, Draco, welcome," he said. "Did you finish your assignment already?"

"Sure did," Malfoy said, grinning. He took out the vial and handed it to him.

"My word. No wonder none of the other thorns were useful to study. The head was necessary too! Well done, gentlemen."

As Dimitri turned around, Harry smirked back at Malfoy. It had been his idea to take the head too. Malfoy just gave him a look.

"Here's your pay. I may have a small assignment ready for you in a couple days. There is a bigger one coming up, but I still have to finish up some things first. I've been getting great data from the Blue Snargaluff you brought."

Harry smiled. "That's great."

Dimitri smiled back. Harry heard fluttering and turned to the envelope. "Er, is this for you, sir?"

"I don't believe so. I think it's for you, Harry."

"Oh," Harry said.

"See you boys later," he said.

They both walked out and Harry reached up to grab the envelope, which didn't resist. He opened it.

"What is it?" Malfoy asked.

"It's a letter from the Minister. He wants to see me," Harry said. Malfoy gave him a puzzled look. "Er, you can come too if you want. It might be about the attacks on our apartments."

Malfoy crossed his arms and shrugged. "It's fine. It's addressed to you so."

Harry just nodded. As they made their way to the elevator, it suddenly opened and Cyprian stepped out. Harry's stomach knotted up at the sight.

"Harry, there you are!" Cyprian exclaimed.

_Please don't mention Quidditch!_

Harry forced a smile. "Er, hi."

"I have something for you," he said, smiling. He held out a gold card. Harry opened it and the card burst to life, unfolding. It read: **_You are cordially invited to attend the opening of the Shrake Pearl on March 13_**_._Malfoy glanced over his shoulder curiously.

"Oh, er, thanks," Harry said.

"My parents are excited to meet you," he said, grinning. Then he nodded toward Malfoy. "Draco."

Draco gave him a very curt nod.

"See you later."

Cyprian waved and then walked down the hall. Once they were in the elevator, Malfoy turned to him.

"What the hell was that about?"

"Oh, er, he's inviting me to some opening event in Hogsmeade. I guess his parents are opening a new store or something."

Malfoy gave him a nasty look. "That prick purposefully said something in front of me knowing he didn't invite me."

"Yeah. That was rude," Harry admitted. "I think that he's just excited to introduce someone famous to his parents. Maybe he thinks it will help the publicity of their new store too."

Malfoy snorted. "Still. Now I hate him even more."

"Yeah," Harry said, staring down at the envelope from the Minister.

Malfoy glanced at him. "Are you worried about something?"

"I don't know. I just have a bad feeling. I mean, I had a bad feeling after the Inferi attack and it hasn't gone away."

"But the Minister said at the celebration that the hexes at my place weren't lethal."

"Yeah, but that's what doesn't make sense. Why put annoying hexes in one place, then lethal Inferi at another. Unless the hexes at our apartments were by random people who wanted to break in, but that seems like too much of a coincidence."

Malfoy shrugged. "I don't know who would want to attack me, but I know you probably have loads of enemies."

"Thanks," Harry said dryly. "At least most of them are locked up or dead."

The tension in the room suddenly heightened and Harry wished he hadn't said anything. He was sure Malfoy wasn't happy about what happened to his parents.

"Er, anyway, I'll let you know what he says," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded and then took off back to the house. Harry sighed and took off toward the Ministry. When he got there, he was immediately escorted up to the Minister's office. Kingsley was there talking with other Aurors when he walked in.

"Harry, welcome," Kingsley said. The Aurors smiled at Harry as they left the room.

"It's bad, isn't it?" Harry asked before he had even sat down.

Kingsley sighed. "Well, it's looking a bit nefarious. It's been discovered there are a couple less Dementors guarding Azkaban than there should be and no one can account for them. It may or may not mean something."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "You think that is connected to the Inferi attack."

"I don't see how, but at this point we can't rule anything out. Anything strange that happens we'll just have to keep in mind. Also, there was a former Death Eater, Macnair. He agreed to ally with us and help us out with anything we couldn't figure out even after all the interrogations of the Death Eaters. It appears that Voldemort wiped a lot of important details from his closest Death Eaters' memories. Well, we were never able to interrogate Bella Lestrange as you know."

"Good riddance," Harry muttered.

Kingsley smiled. "Yeah, well, there are some unclear things. We wanted to make sure that Voldemort didn't have anything in motion, or any back-up plans like agreements with the Giants or vampires. It seems that Voldemort was careful not to divulge too much to his Death Eaters except for specifically what they were required to do. He was clever that way, unfortunately."

Harry nodded. "Well, even if he had other plans he's dead and most Death Eaters are in Azkaban, right?"

Kingsley nodded. "That's true. Anyway, Macnair agreed to ally with us, which means we had him do an Unbreakable Vow to help us in any way he can and to never betray any of us, or anyone from our side. We were very specific. Due to this bond, we felt it was safe for him to go back home with his wand. He had spent three months in the Tower being interrogated and talked to. Just yesterday, we found his body."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What happened?"

"That's…unclear," he said. "It looked like a horrible curse, one that twists and deforms the body, torturing the person to death. However, there was no sign of the house being broken into. The door was completely intact and there no charms on it to suggest it had been repaired. I'm concerned as well because Macnair was going to collect all illegal items from his place and other old hideouts to give to us, things that could be used for bad purposes. We found nothing in his place."

"You think whatever he had collected thus far was taken?" Harry asked.

"Yes. And there's no telling what he had. Most of the dark items and illegal things we managed to get out through interrogation of the other Death Eaters and were able to collect some things. Macnair knew of a place where only Voldemort could get into. We were going to ask for your help."

"My help?"

"Apparently Voldemort sealed this place using Parseltongue and Macnair was going to take us there. He agreed wholeheartedly."

"Didn't anyone go with him to watch him?"

"Yes. There were five Aurors accompanied him. Everyone was standing outside the building guarding it as Macnair went in. They didn't even hear any screams. When he took too long, one of them went inside the door and found his body like that. No sign of breaking in or anything. And the Aurors were guarding it carefully. They said no one had gotten past them."

"So then the only explanation would be that the trap was already set up," Harry said.

Kingsley smiled. "Yes, exactly." He then frowned. "I don't know who would've been powerful enough to do so, or who would want to do so, but I'm concerned maybe there were other supporters that even the other Death Eaters knew nothing about. I'm sure Voldemort didn't tell them everything for his own protection."

"Do you still know the location of this hidden place protected by Parseltongue?"

"Yes. Macnair had told it to us before he died. We will need your help with that, but not just yet. I'm a little wary that someone else may want us to open it for them."

"Oh! That's true," Harry said.

"If that's the case, that could be why someone's after you, but it doesn't explain why they nearly killed you with the Inferi attack. Perhaps they changed their mind about killing you and have decided instead to capture you. You have to be prepared for anything."

Harry nodded slowly.

Kingsley sighed. "I'm sorry, Harry. I wish I could tell you not to worry. It will hopefully be over soon. I've gone over all the Death Eaters and made a list. I've been trying to figure out who we may have missed, maybe friends of the family or extended family."

"Oh, er, what about the Greengrass family?"

"Yes, we've looked into them. That was one of the names given in the interrogations we had with other Death Eaters. Currently, we have no evidence to support that they've been directly involved with Voldemort, the war, or Death Eaters. They've been in Russia the whole time and there's no sign that they ever left in the past 13 years. However, we will keep an eye on them. If we find out that any of them were in the area, we will have a reason to question them. For now, it looks as though they're clean."

Harry's heart sank. The one lead he had found out from Malfoy's dream that could've actually been useful turned out not to be.

"Why did Macnair switch sides?"

"To get a lesser sentence and avoid Azkaban altogether. After he agreed to an Unbreakable Vow, all he got was House Arrest for three years, with more flexibility than others like Crabbe and Goyle's family and Narcissa Malfoy. Besides, it seemed clear to me, especially after interrogating him, that he wasn't so sure about his loyalty to Voldemort anymore. He was rather impressed by you."

"Really?"

Kingsley nodded. "Just be careful. I feel better knowing that you're in one of the safest places you can be. I don't know if Mr. Malfoy was an actual target or was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Because I was there," Harry added darkly.

"Possibly. We don't know very much right now. I hope we can uncover something soon. I will keep you posted. In the meantime, I would suggest not going off anywhere alone."

Harry nodded. "I won't. I'll keep my eyes open."

Kingsley smiled and nodded. He went over and placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "I wouldn't expect anything less."

"Thanks. Bye, Kingsley."

"Take care, Harry. I'll be in touch."

Harry walked out of Kingley's office and toward the elevator. When the elevator doors opened Harry nearly bumped into Professor Slughorn.

"Professor!" Harry exclaimed.

Looking confused, Slughorn stared at him for a minute then smiled a bit. "Harry. Nice to see you again."

He looked pale and had a balding spot on top of his head.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine. Just tired. I have been feeling under the weather lately, but I'll be fine," he said. "I'm just stopping by to see the Minister. I think I'll wait until I'm feeling better before we schedule that tour."

Harry nodded. "Of course, sir. Hope you feel better."

Slughorn coughed and then straightened up. He nodded. "Thank you, Harry. How generous you are."

He then nodded at him and disappeared up the elevator. Harry sighed and flew back to the house. It was already approaching early evening. Harry decided he just wanted to call it a night and be lazy the rest of the day. He was too stressed to care. He took a shower and got dressed into his PJs. He didn't even think to use a drying charm as he went downstairs to get a butterbeer. His hair was still damp and he had on a thin black t-shirt that was slightly damp due to the beads of water that had still been on his chest. He was wearing his comfortable black PJ pants as well. Malfoy was just coming out of the kitchen and they almost bumped into one another. The blond was wearing an almost see-through, soft white t-shirt and his gray PJ pants. Apparently he had the same idea about relaxing.

As they almost bumped into one another Malfoy's eyes briefly trailed down his body before their eyes met again.

"I didn't realize you were back," Malfoy said. "How did it go?"

Harry made a frustrated sound, slipped past him and went to the fridge. He grabbed an entire 4-bottle thing of vanilla-fizz butterbeer and then headed back toward the exit. As he passed Malfoy again, the blond raised his eyebrows.

"That well, huh?"

He followed Harry up the stairs and into the living room. Harry collapsed on the couch and took out a butterbeer, taking a large gulp.

"All right, Potter, what did he say?" Malfoy asked.

Harry sighed heavily and put an arm over his eyes. He briefly summarized what the Minister had told him about the Dementors missing and Macnair being found dead.

"And who do they think is behind it?"

Harry hesitated. He knew Malfoy had been cleared by the Ministry, but after the dream he had last night, he wasn't certain he should spill too much. It wasn't that he necessarily thought Malfoy knew who was behind it, or would go warn the person. Unless the person didn't mean to put Malfoy in danger, but still, it didn't make sense. Then again, the Minister warned him to be overly cautious.

"Er, they're not sure yet. It could be some random crazy person."

Malfoy stared at him for a second then lay back down. For a couple minutes they're silent.

"Great. Now I'm never going to be able to sleep," Harry muttered aloud.

He heard Malfoy turn his head toward him in response. "Actually, there is some good news."

Harry put his arm down and turned to look at him. The blond was eyeing him briefly and then he stared up at the ceiling.

"I got reservations at the wizard resort."

Harry's eyes widened. "You did? When?"

Malfoy shrugged. "After you were whining about it so much, I contacted them through secure owl and they said they would put me on the list so if they had an opening they would let me know."

Harry knew secure owl was like the flying envelope the Minister sent to him. It was to find and follow the person wherever they were when there wasn't a home address that an owl could find. It was for special circumstances and considering that they lived in an unknown and unplottable place, that was Malfoy's only choice for communication.

"They contacted me yesterday and said there was an opening so I booked it since there probably wouldn't be another opening for a while."

"Wow!" Harry exclaimed. "So, er, when is it for?"

"Next weekend."

Harry's heart just about stopped in his chest.

"It's Friday through Sunday."

He swallowed. Malfoy turned and caught sight of his surprised expression. "What? Is that not good?"

Harry only had seconds to think. If he was honest with himself, he didn't want to go to the Quidditch thing with Cyprian being there. He already was going to the Hogsmeade event. Not to mention, Malfoy went through the trouble of booking a wizard resort, knowing that Harry really wanted to go. It was probably some sort of payback for taking Malfoy to the muggle amusement park when he was bored, but still…it was a generous offer.

"Er, no, it's fine, er, I just – what about our assignments? You think anything will be pressing?"

"I doubt it," Malfoy said. "After all, there's no time limit on them."

Harry nodded. "Great. Er, thanks."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. He took a sip of his butterbeer. "Now you owe me."

Harry glared. "Fine."

He lay back down and finished off his butterbeer. Then he reached for another one. Malfoy snorted in response, watching him with amusement. Harry just opened it and took another sip. On top of the potential danger of other Death Eaters wanting revenge against him, and lying to Ron about Cyprian, now he had to find an excuse to Ron to miss out of spending time with him to spend it with Malfoy. Harry hoped with all his might that Ron would never find out about Malfoy, at least not anytime soon. He would have to think of some excuse to tell Ron. Biting his lip, he wondered if he was doing the right thing. Should he really cancel with Ron? He did want to see everyone. But Malfoy hadn't been invited to that. What if he found out Harry went someplace without inviting him? What if Ron found out he cancelled with him over Malfoy's kind gesture about booking the wizard resort? He rubbed his temples. He would have to sleep on it.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note:****I will update asap! Usually the best time to update is on the weekends since I work during the week. I'm also still studying but I've been giving myself breaks. So I should have the next chapter up no later than next weekend! Thanks again for all the reviews!**

To Reviewers:

**HPmeghan7474:** Thanks so much! Glad you liked it! Yeah, I know Draco's stubborn but it makes for some great moments, haha! He was just vulnerable because he was injured and still embarrassed about the kiss he had nearly committed. It will definitely continue to progress, but a bit slowly at first. There will be some things that come up that help the progress move faster. I won't give away who will make the first real move!

**DeiStarr**: Aww, thanks so much! I'm so glad you really liked the last chapter. I promise the relationship is still not going to move too fast. It will be believable. Yes, I know, it's horrible that Draco is in the dark, but then again, Harry is in the dark about some things too. But yes, it's sometimes hard to watch when drama unfolds in relationships. Still, I promise that everything happens for a reason! I'm so glad you like Harry's job too! I try to think of unique things every time I do a story. I'd get too bored with my own writing if I did things over and over again. I will update shortly! Thanks again for all your feedback! =)

**Missy Padfoot:** I'm so glad you like the way things are starting out in their relationship. I definitely took an unusual turn compared to my other Drarry stories, but I kind of like this idea the best so far. Lol! I'm hoping that it's an improvement. Hahaha! Yes, I can see a future like that too, lol! Sadly, no, Ron will not play matchmaker. At least that's not what I have planned at this time. Yes, there are lots of possibilities, muahhahaha! I will not give out any hints as to what's in store. =)

Yes, in this chapter you get to see Draco's more sensitive side. I think I've mentioned before that when I remembered the two times Harry saw Draco crying in the books, I remember thinking: Wow, really? Draco, crying? So he's more sensitive than he lets on. I think this characterization of him in some ways is more accurate than the ones I've had before. His character is more 3-dimensional this way. Instead of just being an ass, or stubborn, and Harry initiating everything, there's a balance in this story and you see different sides to both of them. Draco will always have his obnoxious attitude, don't worry! You'll just see other sides than that when it matters. =)

I promise to not let you cry in your corner for too long! I will update shortly!

**WammygirlZ:** Awww, I'm so glad you thought the cotton candy scene was cute! In response to your question (not sure if you got my private message or not), another review suggested to me about different modes of transportation to make it more believable. So I figured you guys have seen a lot of the wizard train thus far so I'm just toying with other transportation methods. Plus, I figure the train rides are for the really long trips, the ones muggles would normally take planes for. I'm so glad you like the mystery component because it's only going to grow until it comes to its peak! You won't figure out who is behind the attacks for a little while, but it's coming! I will update shortly!

**Ninjacatprincess1:** Awww, thanks so much! I'm so flattered by that! Aww, but don't say that about yourself. I'm sure you're not a bad writer. And all it takes is practice to get better. Looking back at my old stories, I'm like gosh, did I really write that scene? Lol! I actually like this story better than Captivation because there are things about Captivation I would change if I had to do it over again. I'm so glad you like the detail in the stories because I LIVE for detail, lol! Sometimes I get carried away with it, so just let me know if there are times when it's overwhelming. I will update shortly! =)

**Guest:** Thanks! I'm so glad you liked the chapter! Yes, finally some progress with the relationship, lol! It had to start somewhere. I will say that it's still going to develop slowly for a couple more chapters, but there are things in store for them that will help with that. =)

**FairyDust353:** Awww, thanks so much! I'm so happy you like my stories! And I'm glad that my stories are unique. Sometimes I forget things that I've put in other older stories and realize later that I've used the same or similar ideas. I'm hoping this story is a big improvement from Captivation and that everything in it hasn't been done before. =) Awww, thanks again! Yeah, I love exploring the wizard world too and thinking of crazy things. That's why fantasy is so cool! I understand completely that you can't always review every chapter so thank you for taking the time! Any chance you get, whenever you get it, to just let me know what you think or how you feel is greatly appreciated. I promise to never lose hope in my ability! Thanks so much for that! It's such a great feeling knowing I'm writing for such amazing people like you! =)


	10. The First Move

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 9: The First Move **

Harry was so exhausted that he nearly ended up falling asleep on the couch. He felt someone touching his arm. His eyes fluttered open. Malfoy's face was inches from his own. His confused mind took a few minutes to register that he wasn't dreaming and that Malfoy was saying something. Harry rubbed his eyes.

"What?" he asked groggily.

"You're going to fall asleep," Malfoy said.

Harry gave him a look.

"Well if you want to fall asleep on the couch and roll off onto the floor in the middle of the night, that's your choice. If you're actually going to fall asleep for once, I'm thinking your bed would be a better idea."

Forcing himself up, Harry just rolled his eyes. He grumbled under his breath. He slowly started up the stairs with Malfoy behind him. He staggered and almost lost his balance as he reached the landing to the second floor. He felt Malfoy's hands on his shoulders.

"Are you smashed, Potter?" he asked in amusement.

"No," Harry said. "I'm just tired, Malfoy."

"Sure," the blond said, smirking. Malfoy's hands lingered on his shoulders for a second before he pulled away.

Harry's hand was on his doorknob and he turned to glare at him. The blond just snickered as he continued up the stairs to his room. Harry barely remembered collapsing on his bed. Thankfully, he didn't remember having any dreams or memories of Malfoy's.

In the morning, he was still conflicted. He felt that the most logical approach was who he had set plans with first. Technically he and Malfoy had talked about going to the wizard resort before Ron mentioned the Quidditch night. Sighing, he decided to take a shower. He was not looking forward to canceling plans with Ron, but he hoped that Cyprian wouldn't go if Harry wasn't.

Harry wrote a letter to Ron telling him he was sorry but something came up at work. He used the secure owl spell on the letter so that it would go to Ron's house and wait for him. Hopefully Ron wouldn't be too upset. He specifically mentioned in the letter that Cyprian might not feel comfortable there without Harry but that if he did want to go, he hoped they all had fun.

When he went downstairs, Malfoy was already there shirtless and eating breakfast. The blond smirked at him.

"Feeling the effects of last night, Potter?"

"I wasn't smashed, Malfoy," Harry said in annoyance.

He went to the fridge to grab some food. Then he sat down at the table. Malfoy was leaning against his hand. Harry's eyes locked with his. The blond's eyes were for some reason too intense. Harry eventually looked away. He was feeling nervous all of a sudden.

"So are you really going to that thing Cyprian invited you to?"

Harry glanced up in surprise. "Yeah, I guess. Why? Are you upset he didn't invite you?"

Malfoy snorted. "I could care less about his stupid opening. I'm just wondering why you'd let him use you."

Harry shrugged. "He's nice. I mean he can be annoying sometimes but he has his good moments. Besides, I don't have a reason not to go. I don't want to be rude."

"He just wants to show you off as the famous Harry Potter to get publicity."

Harry raised an eyebrow. That was what he had said and now Malfoy was using it as if it was his claim.

"Maybe, maybe not. It's just a one-time thing. It's no big deal."

The blond looked like he was going to retort but just made a sound of annoyance and dropped it.

"So, what's the assignment that Dimitri gave us?" Harry asked.

Malfoy shrugged. "It's not an actual assignment. He just said to get some leaves off a Mermaid Tree. They're found only in very secluded forests. They're shy and so you have to be patient. He just doesn't have the time to do it himself, but he needs the leaves to help with studying the samples he has. I think it would be better if I do this one."

Harry turned and stared at him. "Why?"

"Because two of us would make it more likely to scare it away. Besides, all you have to do is sit and be patient and wait for it to puff out and stretch its tail."

"Its tail?"

"That's why it's called a Mermaid Tree. It had a tail that comes out only when it stretches that looks like that of a mermaid. When it stretches a leaf or two will fall. Then I just have to summon the leaves to me. He said he only needs five so it shouldn't take more than an hour or two. I have to run errands anyway."

"Oh, er, really? What kind of errands?" Harry asked, trying to sound casual.

Malfoy shrugged. "Just groceries. I'm going to wait a little bit though. Mermaid Trees usually don't wake up and come up from underground to stretch until mid-day."

Harry nodded. He tried not to show his suspicion. He hated jumping to conclusions. He needed more information. However, if Malfoy went by himself that meant he would be out of his room for a while. There were plenty of groceries in the fridge. Was Malfoy lying to him?

"Okay. So what time are you leaving?" he asked causally.

"I don't know. I guess probably around 1 or 2."

Harry nodded. His heart was racing. Maybe he would finally get some answers and know for sure whether Malfoy was up to something he shouldn't be. He had a lot of time before Malfoy left though. He had to let Malfoy think he would be gone too.

"I'm going out for a while anyway."

Malfoy gave him a look that showed he could care less. Harry glared and then began eating his breakfast. Before Harry was even done eating, Malfoy went back upstairs. He sighed heavily and floated his dishes into the sink. He was so conflicted. On the one hand, Malfoy was a lot different than he thought. He was actually fun to hang out with, most of the time. He could be snarky and annoying, but he wasn't as bad as he thought. Then again, he came from a very dark family and due to the fact he had joined Voldemort's ranks, whether willingly or not, Harry wasn't sure if he was a bad person, or if he was trustworthy. He was afraid to let his guard down.

Harry saw that it was only 11 so he left the house to take a trip to Ron's. He wasn't sure if Ron had received his letter yet. He was tempted to Apparate, since he knew how. Wizards and witches could Apparate anywhere that they were familiar so long as it was within a certain distance. Apparation more than a certain number of miles was life-threatening. The father the distance, the more strain it put on one's body and the more chance there was at ending up losing a limb. Plus, Harry hadn't taken his Apparation test through the Ministry so he wasn't legally able to do it. He had to do it soon though. Flying and taking the train was nice, but Apparation was the fastest way to travel.

As he was flying, however, he became aware of something following him. He stopped mid-air and saw that an envelope with wings was hurriedly trying to catch up. It must've been seeking him out but couldn't go as far as the Grimmauld Place due to the protections. Harry balanced on his broom as he opened the letter. It was from Ron, but it was incredibly strange. For one thing, it was short and vague.

_Harry, _

_Meet me at the house by 12, if you can. _

_Ron_

Ron must have received his letter about not being able to make it. He hoped his friend wasn't mad. Harry flew to Ron's house. He only had to knock once before the door flew open. It startled him. Ron had a grim look on his face.

"Let's go to my room," he said, gesturing.

Harry blinked and then nodded. He went upstairs and as he did Ginny came out of her room.

"Hey Harry," she said, smiling.

"Hey Gin."

"Are we playing Quidditch today?"

"Not right now," Ron said gruffly.

Ginny gave him an annoyed look. She then smiled and waved at Harry as she proceeded down the stairs. Harry waved back and followed Ron into his room. Ron shut the door rather harshly. Then he put up a silencing charm.

"Ron, what's –"

"When the _bloody hell_ were you going to tell me bloody Malfoy was your partner?!"

Harry completely froze. The nightmare of everything blowing up in his face felt way too close for comfort.

Ron didn't even give him a chance to speak. His face was red with anger. He began pacing back and forth.

"I got your bloody letter and then I was like, 'oh, poor Harry, he always has to work.' So you know what I did? I went to your bloody work to talk to Cyprian and ask if he still wanted to come."

Harry 's throat constricted.

"I told Cyprian about your work thing and how you couldn't make it and do you know what he said? He said, 'oh, that's such a shame! Why can't Draco take the next assignment alone so that Harry can come?' Do you know what I said? I was like, 'Draco?' I mean, no it couldn't be the same Draco Malfoy who grew up with us at Hogwarts and was a complete nightmare!" he laughed angrily. "No. Harry wouldn't be that desperate or stupid!"

Harry winced.

"Oh, but no, it is Draco bloody Malfoy! He's your partner! And Merlin knows how long he's been your partner, but I want to know why you didn't tell me! And why the bloody hell you're working with Malfoy of all people?!" he yelled.

He stopped and stared at Harry. Swallowing, Harry nodded.

"Ron, Malfoy is my partner, but that's it. We just help each other out with assignments and get paid. It's not like I'm going behind your back and playing Quidditch with him instead or something."

"That's not the point, Harry! You kept something from me! You, me and Hermione always promised each other that we were never going to do that!"

"I know! But I didn't think it was something you had to know!"

"You _didn't_ think it was something we had to know?!" Ron exclaimed incredulously. "This is bloody Malfoy we're talking about!"

"Yeah, I get it, but – "

"But nothing! How could you even do something like work alongside him with anything! I mean, it would be just as bad working in the same building as him! He tried to kill Dumbledore, do you remember that?"

"I do, Ron," Harry said coolly. "I will never forget it, but I talked with the Minister. When all these attacks were going on, I met up with the Minister – "

"And how the hell do you know that it isn't Malfoy who's behind the attacks?!" Ron exclaimed.

"Ron, shut-up and let me talk!" Harry snapped. "I know because he was with me."

Instantly, Ron's eyebrows shot straight up his forehead. "He what?"

"He was with me! The night of Inferi attack both me and Malfoy got attacked. Obviously if he was behind it he wouldn't have been there to get torn apart! Shut-up and let me finish," Harry said, pointing at him before he could say anything. "The Minister told me that Lucius is in Azkaban and Narcissa is on House Arrest and that Malfoy was cleared of all charges. He was forced into it. I'm not saying he's a good person," Harry added as Ron's face turned even redder. "I'm not. I'm just saying that he was forced to join Voldemort and forced to attempt to kill Dumbledore. So, yeah, he's an annoying prick, but he's not dangerous."

"Not dangerous?! Harry what the bloody hell is wrong with you?!" Ron bellowed, throwing his hands up in the air. "How can you be so trusting with him? Yeah, maybe he was forced into joining! That doesn't mean that he doesn't want you dead!"

"I'm not being stupid, Ron! I'm keeping my guard up! But if he wanted me dead then why would he save my life?"

Ron looked as if he had just chewed a vomit-flavored Bertie Bott's jellybean. "_What!?_"

"Yeah, it was – we had a really difficult assignment with a dangerous plant and he saved my life. I also saved his, so we're even, but if he really wanted to kill me he's had more than enough opportunities."

Ron's entire body shook with anger. He clenched his fists. Harry stepped forward slowly and gestured to him.

"Ron, please. Trust me. I know how you feel about Malfoy," he said, lowering his voice. Ron's body shook as he tilted his head to gaze at him. "I know the things he's said to you, to all of us, and I know he's not the best person. I'm sorry I didn't tell you right away. I was going to let you guys know, er, I just wanted to wait until I was sure I was going to stay at that job. I really like it. It pays well and there's a danger element that's exciting and there's a lot to learn and I'm not going to let Malfoy ruin that. Honestly, he hasn't been a problem."

"That doesn't mean anything! And it's not just that, Harry. You…," Ron trailed off shaking his head. He looked like he was going to breathe fire. "You're choosing to work with Malfoy over hanging with your friends!"

"No, I'm not!" Harry exclaimed. "How can you think that? This is my _job_! When I'm given assignments, I have to complete them. It's my responsibility to do them."

"Cyprian said that they don't always have to be done right away!"

"Well I want to get this one over with! I don't like having things looming over my head! I wouldn't be able to enjoy hanging out with you guys thinking about the assignment I'd have to do the next day. Ron, I will get a break from work. Every time we finish an assignment we usually get a few days off. Last time we actually got a week. It depends on if Dimitri has something ready for us or not. I promise you that I _want_ to spend time with you guys. Of course I do! And I promise that after this next assignment, I will be available to hang out anytime."

"Don't bother!" Ron snapped. "You clearly would rather hang out with some traitorous asshole than have fun with your friends who have been there for you since we were kids while Malfoy has never done anything good for anybody but himself!"

"Ron, I'm not – "

"Just go!" Ron bellowed, pointing to the door. "Go and hang out with your new friend!"

Harry clenched his fists. "He's not my friend! We're work partners!"

"You're still hanging out with him! It's the same thing!"

"It is not! You're being ridiculous! You see," Harry said, gesturing. "This is why I didn't want to tell you! I knew you were going to completely blow it out of proportion!"

"Blow it – Harry, are you insane?!" Ron snapped. "It doesn't matter if Malfoy really wanted to kill people or not! He's a bad person with a horrible family! He's never been nice to us! He's a Slytherin and he will always be one! He only cares about himself!"

"So what are you saying? That you wouldn't be happy unless I quit my job just because you want to hold grudges from the past?! So I should just give up a great job so _you_ can feel better?! Well, I'm not doing it! If you want to act childish then go ahead!"

With that, Harry stomped out of the room and slammed the door behind him. He was grateful that Ginny had left so she wouldn't ask why he was rushing out the door looking like he was going to kill someone. He took off in a rush, zooming as fast as his broom would go. He had to clear his head. Harry flew around for hours trying to get the fight out of his head. He stopped for lunch at Hogsmeade when he became hungry enough. As he was sitting there, he kept thinking about everything he was doing. It was wrong of him not to tell his friends. At the same time, they should trust him. What was worse was that Ron had a point. Harry didn't completely trust Malfoy. Here he was somewhat standing up for Malfoy when he was going behind his back to spy on him to try to figure out if he was up to something. There was something he was hiding, but whether or not it was something Harry had to worry about was another thing. What was the right thing to do? Should he ask for a new partner just to appease his friends? Should he confront Malfoy about his suspicions? Nothing seemed like it had an easy answer or easy solution.

After a while, Harry finally made his way back home. He needed a butterbeer bad. It wasn't that he needed alcohol. Thankfully it had very little alcohol content and took a lot to get drunk, but it was the ingredient that caused the warmth in the stomach that he wanted to feel. He always felt like it completely took the tension away. It was just a simple potion put into the edible ingredients, one made to ease tension, but it worked.

Harry walked in the door and went directly into the kitchen. He grabbed a butterbeer from the fridge. When he turned around, Malfoy was entering the kitchen. Their eyes locked and he must've seen the look on Harry's face. His lips were set in a thin line and his eyebrows were furrowed.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I'm not in the mood, Malfoy!" Harry snapped, brushing by him.

He went into the living room and lay down on the couch. He heard Malfoy come into the room a minute later but he didn't look up.

"Geez, Potter, you don't have to bite my head off," Malfoy said. Harry was relieved it wasn't in his usual annoying drawl. He was not in the mood. "So what the hell's got you so pissed?"

"Nothing. I don't want to talk about it," Harry snapped in irritation.

Malfoy just raised an eyebrow and headed over to his couch. "I hope you're not going to be like this next weekend."

Harry sighed and took another swig of butterbeer. "I'm actually looking forward to it. I need a vacation."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah, so do I."

Harry glanced over at him. The blond had a pleased expression on his face.

"So did you get the small assignment done?"

"Yep," Malfoy said. "I dropped it off to Dimitri an hour ago."

Harry nodded. Then he inwardly cursed. He had been so upset with Ron that he completely forgot to take advantage of the fact that Malfoy would be gone.

"Are there any other assignments?"

"No."

Harry sighed. "What are we going to do for a week?"

"Well you clearly need to catch up on sleep because you definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed."

Turning his head, Harry glared at him. Malfoy was silent for a minute.

"We could always see if the researcher/data collector people need help. We could visit the plants and do odd jobs. It will be like old times," Malfoy added, referring to when he had started out as a helper.

Harry shrugged then nodded. "Yeah, I guess that sounds good."

Malfoy just made a sound of agreement in the back of his throat. Harry rested his arm above his head. He hoped that Ron would just cool off. Maybe going away was the best for both of them. If he gave Ron some space and wasn't around at all then maybe things would just blow over. It wasn't like Ron even knew that he and Malfoy lived together, or that they were going to a resort together. Harry cringed at the reaction Ron would have. Still, if Ron found out he was hiding even more from him, he would freak out. At least if Harry was honest about everything upfront, even if Ron got mad, he would eventually have to accept that Harry didn't keep him in the dark this time and that he respected his decision to know about Malfoy.

_Oh Merlin….I'll have to tell Ron about everything when I get back from the resort. I'll just give him some time to cool down first. Besides, I'm too angry to talk to him right now. But I can't hide the fact that we're living together. If I hide anything else, Ron may never forgive me. _

Harry swallowed. It was possible that Ron would find out they were living together so he'd have to tell him. He would have to think of the best way to explain the situation. In terms of them "dating" each other, there was no way in hell that was happening. Besides, nothing had happened and nothing would happen between them like that. So he didn't have to say anything about something that hadn't really happened. It wasn't something that anyone was likely to find out on their own anyway unless Malfoy said something. He doubted the blond would ever admit to it. There was no reason why Ron had to know about the awkward almost-kiss or that they went to a resort together. He just needed to know the important things.

A little while later, after finishing his butterbeer, Harry went up to bed. He glanced at Snape's finished potion. He had taken enough potions for a while. He was concerned that the Astringo one he took with Malfoy's hair wasn't wearing off yet. It did say it could be in his system for around two weeks. Hopefully by the time they went to the resort it would be gone. The memories were just confusing him and creating more questions. Now that he knew the password to Malfoy's trunk that was all he needed.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_~A week later~_

Harry watched as the black liquid dripped from the opening of the needle of the Venomous Tentacula piece. Very carefully Liaeda sealed it. It was from their first assignment.

"There. Now we see if it has different results than the first time," she said smiling. "We already discovered that the liquid paralyzes so we're hoping we can turn it into an anesthetic."

"That's great," Harry said, smiling back.

She pushed her light brown hair out of her face. "You guys certainly have progressed far faster than any field researchers we've ever had. You work well together."

"Er, thanks," Harry said.

"I can't believe you both would come in here to help out instead of taking the week off," she said, floating the sample to their laboratory.

Harry shrugged. "We get bored easily."

Liaeda laughed. "I've noticed."

He looked around nervously to make sure Cyprian wasn't there. He had been lucky so far not to run into him. He was afraid if he did he'd punch him in the face for revealing to Ron that he and Malfoy were partners. He knew it was irrational. It was his fault for not telling Ron, not Cyprian's. Still, he just wasn't ready to face anyone. Malfoy was helping out another assistant, some guy named Treal.

"Well that's all we have for today. Are you both coming in tomorrow?"

"No. Actually, we'll be taking a break for a few days."

Liaeda smiled. "Good. You deserve it."

Suddenly, Malfoy popped his head in. "Potter, you ready?"

"Er, yeah, I'm ready." He turned back to Liaeda. "Thanks. I'll see you later then."

"Bye, Harry."

He and Malfoy left the building and flew back to the house. Malfoy headed into the kitchen to make dinner and Harry went upstairs to take a shower. He sighed heavily as he let the water cascade down his body. It was already eight at night. They had just gotten back from spending hours at Hellebore helping out with the plants and the research. Both of them had slept in and went in the afternoon. It was nice being able to do work whenever. It was interesting because he and Malfoy were becoming acquaintances with some of the other researchers there and learning how they compiled the data. Harry loved going to see the plants in action or the tests they did with the samples.

He hadn't heard from Ron the whole week. That just made him angrier. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that while he did hide something, it wasn't right for Ron to attack him like that. It wasn't like he committed a personal betrayal. Ron was acting as though Harry had pretended to be his friend the whole time. He was grateful for Malfoy's suggestion in working with people at Hellebore. It distracted him and gave him other people to talk to.

After the shower, Harry stepped out and was drying himself off when he heard a knock.

"One sec," Harry said. He quickly waved his wand to summon his pants and t-shirt so he wasn't naked.

He then went over and opened the door. Malfoy was standing there having just recently taken a shower himself. His hair was dry but Harry could see his shirt still had droplets of water on it.

"Just to let you know we have to be there by 10 to check in."

"Oh, okay," Harry said, blinking. He couldn't believe they were leaving for the wizard resort already. He was nervous and excited. He had never been to America before. "How are we getting there?"

"This resort actually has its own special flying cars. They're a new model and they can go twice as fast as a regular flying car because they have advanced charms. They had to go through the Ministry to get these charms, but everyone wants a flying car like it now. The man who owns it is like one of the richest wizards so he could afford to spend money on developing this new car. He designed the resort too of course. Anyway, these shuttle cars are included in the charge so they will come to pick us up. Since this place is protected, I told them to meet us in the neighborhood over, which we can just fly to."

"Wow! That's amazing," Harry said. "So what time do we have to be ready by?"

"We have to be out there by 6."

Harry nodded. He figured a plane ride from Europe to America was 7 hours so the flying car was a bit faster than an airplane making it so they could get there in 4 hours.

"Are you going to be ready that early, Potter?" Malfoy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll be ready," Harry said. "Why?"

"Well, with all your sleep deprivation I just want to make sure that I don't have to come in here and drag you out of bed."

"Hardly," Harry retorted. "Oh, Malfoy," he said as the blond had begun to turn. "How much do I owe you?"

The blond raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, Potter. You don't have to pay me back. But the next one is yours."

With that Malfoy disappeared up the stairs. Harry closed the door, wondering what Malfoy meant by next one. Perhaps he meant the next vacation Harry would be the buying. Sighing, he collapsed into bed.

When he woke up in the morning, he was surprised that he fell asleep so quickly. He didn't remember seeing any more memories. Maybe he was too tired to concentrate on it or maybe the potion was finally wearing off. He got up and packed a few things to take with him. They would only be there for a few days. He wasn't sure what it would be like with Malfoy. When they were working together, it was easy to focus on the job. With something like this, they would actually have to be like real friends in order to not kill each other. He couldn't shake the nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach.

A knock came at his door. Harry grabbed his bag and opened it. Malfoy was standing there with his bag, which of course was overly fancy. It was a medium-sized blue velvet box with a charmed combination on the front.

"You ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," Harry said.

They both headed outside. They both shrunk their belongings into their pockets. After making sure the coast was clear, they took out their brooms and flew to the neighborhood nearby.

"Remember, Potter, when we get there, try not to embarrass me by getting excited about every little thing and taking pictures," Malfoy said with a smirk.

Harry turned his head slowly and gave him a look. "First of all, I don't have a camera. Second of all, shut-up."

Thankfully, the car was coming down from the sky. Harry stared at it in awe. It was a dark gold and the words _**Sawbridge Resort & Adventure **_gleamed in black_**. **_Harry recognized the name Sawbridge from a famous wizard card, but couldn't remember the significance.

It hovered just near them and the doors opened on their own. Harry and Malfoy both got in. That's when they realized that there wasn't even a driver.

"Wow! This must be the first wizard car to not have a driver," Harry said.

When he turned to glance at Malfoy the blond was grinning. He realized he had said that fairly enthusiastically to Malfoy's bemusement.

"Shut-up," Harry muttered.

Malfoy sat back and rested his arms behind his head. "I can't wait to see the rooms. This resort has complimentary massage charms, floating chairs, and your own choice of the layout of the room, with a fireplace, of course, which is standard in most suites."

Harry's eyebrows rose in amazement. Then one thing stood out to him. "Sounds great. Er, so we both get our own rooms?"

The blond's gaze locked with his. Then his lips curled into a half smirk, half smile. "Of course, Potter. I didn't feel I should get one room since sex is off the table right now."

Harry's entire face suddenly felt hot. He tried to control it so his skin wouldn't flush red. This was the first time since the night that they had mentioned dating that Malfoy even mentioned anything related. The blond had just been acting like his usual self so Harry assumed he changed his mind. Obviously he hadn't. This made him all the more nervous. Harry shook his head and turned to look out the window to cover his embarrassment. He was a bit surprised. Malfoy was being respectful of Harry's decision. That was a good sign. Did Malfoy expect them to become a couple?

"What are we going to do first?" Harry asked, changing the subject.

"Well I wanted to check out the dragon floor."

Harry's eyes instantly locked onto him. Malfoy glanced at him.

"Oh, really? You like dragons?" Harry asked lamely. His mind was spinning. He remembered the page he had read about the rare, mythical Onyx Dragon.

Malfoy shrugged. "Yeah, I like them. They have professional dragon trainers there to help people ride them, but they also have this famous expert witch who has been studying dragons her whole life. For generations her family has been studying dragons and there's this family book that she adds to about the dragons she's encountered. So it's supposedly the most complete source of dragon information. People all over the world go to her for dragon advice since she supposedly knows everything about any dragon."

Harry swallowed. "Wow. That is really cool. Are you going to ride one?"

"Of course," Malfoy said, snorting. "I wouldn't give up that opportunity. Are you?"

"Yeah. I'll bet it will be a lot better than riding a wild dragon," Harry said, referring to his 7th year after collecting a Horcrux.

Malfoy snorted. He obviously knew what he was referring to. "I can't believe that's what Weasley is doing," Malfoy added.

Swallowing, Harry nodded. He didn't want to talk about Ron. He wondered if Cyprian was still going to Ron's Quidditch night.

"So what other things do they have there?"

"There's too much to list off everything," Malfoy said, turning to gaze at him. "I know there's a merpeople floor where you can go miles underwater and explore caves and crystal coves and other tunnels or places that merpeople live or explore. They also host scavenger hunts. Anything you find you get to keep. Our rooms are on their Quidditch floor. Every floor has a different theme and they have things on each floor that coincide with the theme, like the merpeople floor."

"What does our floor have?"

"An interactive Quidditch championship match. You can choose the team you want to play on and what position. They make up actual teams and you can wear your favorite team's uniform if you want. It's an actual Quidditch competition with bludgers and everything, except that the bludgers are charmed to only knock people's brooms. I think the winning team gets free brooms – the newest edition of the Firebolt series, which I think is the Firebolt5000."

"Wow," Harry said. "So you're impressed with this place then?"

Malfoy shrugged, stretching out his arms. "I guess. They have a tattoo place too. I'm thinking about getting one."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Really? You just had one removed."

The blond looked over at him. They stared for several seconds before Malfoy snorted. "Very funny, Potter."

Harry shrugged. "I'm just saying."

"Wizard tattoos are different," he drawled coolly.

Malfoy didn't sound angry, just annoyed but Harry didn't want to push his buttons.

"Where would you get it?"

The blond propped up a leg. "I don't know. Maybe on the back of my shoulder. I haven't decided if I want one yet."

Harry nodded. He sighed and glanced out the window. "How much longer do we have?"

"It's only been like a half hour so like three and half more hours," Malfoy said. "I think I'm going to take a nap."

"That's a good idea," Harry agreed.

The both of them curled up on opposite ends of the backseat, leaning their heads up against the window. To Harry's surprise, and delight, the second he leaned his head against it, the part below the window swelled up like a pillow. He rested his head comfortably.

When he woke up some time later, he glanced over to see Malfoy had his legs propped up and he was leaning back against his pillow with his head turned to the side. He looked very peaceful sleeping. Harry couldn't help but stare. The car suddenly jolted and Malfoy's eyes opened. Harry looked away quickly. The car was slowing down. Harry stared out the window at the massive structure before them. It looked three times the size of Hogwarts. Harry's excitement grew as the car landed in front of the entrance. They stepped out and there was a wizard dressed in a gold and black uniform there to greet them.

"Welcome!" He said with a smile. "Right this way."

He led them toward the elevator.

"All you have to do is say your room number and it will take you there. Also, if you want to check out any floor, you just do the same. Enjoy your stay!"

"Thanks," Harry said.

The doors closed.

"Floor 100," Malfoy said.

"We're on the 100th floor?" Harry asked.

"Of course. It's got the greatest view," Malfoy said.

When they reached the floor, Harry saw a snitch fly by him. He almost reached out to grasp it.

Malfoy snorted. "They're just holograms. They're not real, just charmed to look real. You wouldn't want a real bludger coming down the hallways."

Harry grinned. "No, I guess not."

They arrived at their rooms, which were right next door to each other. They both glanced at one another and then walked into their respective rooms. Harry was in awe when he saw the room decked out in Quidditch team colors. He remembered Malfoy saying they could choose the format. He could choose the team that he liked best and the room would become just those colors. The carpet was soft and melted beneath his feet. It was a good-sized room. There was a fireplace just as Malfoy had said with two floating cushioned chairs in front of it and a small coffee table. The bed was huge. There was a small nightstand next to it. The window in the area with the fireplace was huge and looked out across the distant landscape. It was quite a view. He could see trees for miles.

"So what do you think?"

Harry turned around to see Malfoy standing in the doorway.

"It's great!" Harry exclaimed. "How is yours?"

Malfoy shrugged, leaning up against the doorframe. "Good. As expected."

Harry just snorted and shook his head. He unshrunk his things and put them on the bed.

"We can get something to eat first and then go to one of the floors."

"Oh, sure," Harry said.

"There's a menu by the nightstand. You just choose what you want and it will be summoned up to our rooms."

"Like room service," Harry said with a smile.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Potter, is that – "

"Yeah, yeah, nevermind."

Harry walked over to the nightstand as Malfoy went back into his room. He saw the list of dishes and pressed his finger on the Krakel Meat Cakes and then turned it over to look at the drinks. He got a drink he had never had before – a Fizzling Rainbow juice cocktail. When it arrived, he saw it was definitely fizzing. It was red in color and when he took a sip it tasted like strawberry. Then when he pulled his mouth away it turned blue. When he took a sip, it tasted like blue raspberry. It changed five different colors and flavors and then would continue the same order as he sipped it. It was refreshing.

After eating, Malfoy came back into his room. "Come on, Potter, I want to check out the water adventure. So get your swimsuit on."

Harry froze when he heard the word 'water'. "Er, I didn't bring a swimsuit."

Malfoy shrugged. "That's fine. They have swimsuits. Come on. I'm hoping it won't be really crowded since it's lunch time."

The blond turned around and Harry swallowed. He followed suit all the while trying to find an excuse as to why he didn't want to do the water adventure.

They went down the elevator to the 30th floor. It was underwater themed. The hallways were charmed to look like they were walking underwater. On either side of them was ocean with merpeople and other water creatures passing by. Harry saw a Kappa Demon swim by and its red eyes seemed to lock on to his. They walked past all the rooms and into the main area. It was amazing. They walked inside and the floors and walls were all see-through and flowing with water. The floors squished beneath their feet like sponges.

They came to a stone archway with the words _"Water Adventure"_ engraved in it. There were steps leading down into it. The area with the steps leading up to the archway was completely filled with water. Harry could see that through the archway came to a main water area that had statues pouring water, some of which would pick people up when they got close enough and toss them into the water. It was huge. There were water slides floating in the air that spit people out in a certain part of the water. They also sucked people up from the water once they got under the beginning area. He heard people laughing and screaming with joy as they got sucked up inside and spit out the top at least twenty feet in the air.

"The swimsuits should be over there," Malfoy said, pointing to a cabinet.

Harry hesitated but then nodded. His heart was pounding. The cabinet opened and he chose the black and gold swimsuit. The cabinet then expanded for him, creating a barrier so no one could watch as he waved his wand and changed into a bathing suit. His wand then attached itself to the side of the bathing suit. When he emerged, he noticed that Malfoy's was attached to his as well. There must have been a charm on bathing suits so they wouldn't lose their wands. His clothes automatically hung themselves in the cabinet for when he was done. Taking in a deep breath, Harry approached the pool of water. Malfoy was already standing in the water in his mostly silver bathing suit that had black on the waist band and the very bottom of the bathing suit. The black on the bottom was designed to look like a wave pattern.

Harry slowly stepped into the water. He didn't want to appear nervous. Thankfully the water from the steps all the way to the arch wasn't too deep so they could stand. Malfoy was already at the archway and Harry made his way over. However, when they got past the point of the archway, Harry noticed it was getting harder to touch. It was already to his chin and Malfoy was wading out. Harry stopped and scooted back a little bit, putting a hand on the part of the arch that was in the water. Malfoy turned around when he noticed Harry wasn't swimming behind him.

"Potter, what are you doing?"

Harry wasn't sure what to say. "I don't know about this."

"What? Can't you swim?"

"Er, I can flounder," Harry said.

Malfoy snorted. He began wading back to him. "How did you go all this time without learning to swim?"

Harry shrugged. "I never needed to learn."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "I distinctly remember you being in the Triwizard Tournament."

Rolling his eyes, Harry responded, "That wasn't my choice. Besides, I didn't really need to worry about drowning since I had the Gillyweed."

The blond was about a foot away from him. He smiled in amusement. "Are you scared of the water, Potter?"

"Not scared, just uncertain," Harry retorted. "I know that it seems like there's always trouble around me. That's because it usually finds me. I don't like putting myself into situations, like, oh, hey, I don't know how to swim, why don't I just dive in the water and hope I don't drown."

Malfoy laughed. "You're so dramatic, Potter. All you have to do is wade your arms like this and kick your legs. It's that easy."

Harry watched him and then mimicked his movements. Very slowly he started moving into the deeper part.

"This is very tiring," Harry said.

"That's because you have to keep your arms up here," Malfoy said, grabbing one of his hands and pulling it to the surface of the water.

Harry tried it and realized that the water was flowing smoothly around him and he was staying afloat.

"Now move your legs too, like this," Malfoy said.

Harry peered into the water to watch him and then attempted to do it but his arms stopped moving. Malfoy burst into laughter.

"You're supposed to do it at the same time."

"Yeah, well, it's not that easy when you're doing it for the first time," Harry said, trying it again. This time he did it right.

"Now try actually moving forward, not just staying in one place," Malfoy said as he began to swim backward.

Harry followed him, moving forward slowly. Once he got the hang of wading his arms and kicking his feet underwater at the same time, it wasn't that difficult. He couldn't believe that Malfoy was teaching him to swim. Malfoy was not only being helpful but he was being considerate since he was going slowly so Harry could keep up.

_He's not such a bad guy. He can actually be really nice, when he's not having an attitude. _

He couldn't believe that he learned to swim in such a short amount of time. It really wasn't that hard once he got the hang of it. Just then Harry felt something beneath his feet that touched his skin. The first thought that came to mind was that something was trying to pull him under, like the Grindelow did. He remembered seeing the haunting red eyes of the Kappa Demon and he instantly panicked. He reacted so quickly he didn't have time to register what he was doing. Malfoy's back was to him. Harry flung his arms around him and latched on. Malfoy turned his head while in the embrace staring at Harry. Their noses practically touched.

"There's something in the water beneath me," Harry said.

Malfoy's eyes gazed down into the water and he turned his head around to see. "That's just a water serpent."

Harry saw the shadow swim beneath them. "It's like ten feet long!"

"It's harmless, Potter," Malfoy said, smirking. "Are you afraid of that too?"

"Not afraid. It just startled me. So it's a snake?"

"No. It's got the face of a dragon but the body of a serpent. It's known as a Water Dragon but it's neither in the dragon family nor the snake family. They're unique."

"Oh," Harry said, as another one swam beneath them.

It had pointed scales on the end of its long body, similar to a dragon's tail. It was coming up close to the surface and Harry instinctively reached out a hand. His fingers ran across the smooth body briefly before it dove deeper.

"You can ride them too, but you have to be fast," Malfoy said.

Harry glanced at him. "Really? Have you ever managed that?"

"No, but I've heard it's fun. It's just a challenge."

Harry nodded.

"Potter, are you going to hold on to me the entire time?"

Harry quickly unwound his arms from around Malfoy's body. "Oh, er, sorry."

The blond's lips curled into a sly smile. Harry was too embarrassed to keep the gaze so he looked away and watched some of the other people. Being farther in, Harry realized just how tall the ceiling was. There were slides of all kinds going up level by level.

"How do people reach those slides?" Harry asked, pointing.

Malfoy gazed upward. "You can either use a spell or they have jets in certain places of the water that when you sit on will bring you up a level."

"Wow," Harry said, staring in awe.

"Come on, Potter, let's try one."

"Let's what?"

Malfoy snorted and started swimming toward the jet. Harry slowly began swimming. He was happy he was able to swim now, although he couldn't keep up with Malfoy. When the blond reached the jet he floated over the area and waited. Suddenly a burst of water bubbled up and shot Malfoy into the air. Harry gasped as Malfoy went flying right up into a slide tube. He came out the other end with a large grin on his face. It spit him out and he fell ten feet towards the water feet first. When he resurfaced, he swam toward him.

"Now your turn."

Harry swam over the same area. He glanced at Malfoy who raised an eyebrow. Before Harry could say anything the jet pushed his body upward. He soared into the air, feeling his stomach lurk just like on a rollercoaster. He saw the slide tunnel and instantly was caught inside of it. His body slid fast down the curvy slide. He was thrust quickly out of the end, soaring for several seconds until his body hit the water. He laughed as he resurfaced, shaking his wet bangs out of his eyes. Malfoy had an amused grin on his face.

Then Harry caught sight of another water serpent with its long smooth, scale-like body. Harry ducked his head under water and when the serpent was close Harry got a good look at its dark bronze-colored eyes. The pupils dilated, turning into slits when its gaze locked onto him. It didn't charge at him though. Instead it started swimming past him. Harry instinctively grabbed hold, wrapping his arms around the serpent's thick body just below its head. The water dragon didn't react violently at all. In fact, it just kept swimming along as if nothing happened. Harry was taken for a whirlwind ride as the snake's body moved like a wave as it swam. Harry tightened his grip on the serpent when he realized he was running out of air. The water dragon surfaced jumping high into the air. It coiled its head around and its body slipped out from beneath him. Harry was mid-air with the water dragon and its head was faced toward him. Harry gazed into its eyes for a split second before he landed in the water. The dragon dove in gracefully, unlike Harry, and disappeared beneath the water.

When Harry surfaced people were clapping. Harry gazed around in surprise.

"That was bloody awesome! How did you do that?" one guy asked him. He had an Irish accent. He swam over to him. A couple others followed; two girls and another guy.

"Oh, I just went underwater and when it got close I looked into its eyes. It seemed to just swim past me more slowly so I was able to grab hold just below its head," Harry explained.

"Cool! I never thought to look it in the eyes. Everyone always thinks that if it sees you coming it will swim away," the guy said.

"Yeah," Harry said.

He searched around for Malfoy hoping that people wouldn't suddenly recognize him and bombard him.

"Wicked! I got to try that," one of the girls said.

Harry smiled.

"Thanks mate," the Irish guy said.

"No problem," Harry said, swimming out of the way. He wondered where Malfoy had gone.

"Finished with your fan club there, Potter?"

Harry wheeled around in the water to see Malfoy leaning up against a nearby statue.

"Er, you do realize if you move any farther right it's going to grab you and throw you, right?"

"I'm aware," Malfoy said. "That was impressive, Potter. I didn't think you'd try that."

"Neither did I, but it was just right there under water with me."

Malfoy smirked. "You're a show-off."

Harry glared. "You're just jealous. Why don't you try it?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Maybe later. I want to check that out."

Harry inclined his head and saw at the very top of the ceiling there was an enormous slide that went from at least 200 feet off the ground and down to about 10 feet above the water.

"Whoa," he said. "How the hell do we get up there?"

Suddenly one of the statutes spit water at a nearby person and they laughed in amusement. Harry laughed too. Malfoy just looked amused.

"I say we take the air elevator."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Do I want to know what that is?"

Smirking, Malfoy began to swim and Harry followed him. They went over to the other side of the water and there was a spot where air came up. They both hovered over it. When the air hit them they were taken up toward the ceiling like an elevator only much faster. They had an amazing view of the water down below as they reached the top. They were both taken right up to the entrance of the slide. They both went down one right after the other. Malfoy was first. Harry was ecstatic as they curved left to right speeding down the gigantic slide. It felt just like a rollercoaster ride. They flew out the bottom and into the water.

Harry laughed. "That was amazing!"

Malfoy grinned. "Of course. You ready to get out?"

"Sure," Harry said.

They swam back toward the archway and into the smaller, shallower pool of water. They stepped out and used their wands to dry themselves off. Harry went to the cabinet to change back into his clothes.

"So where to next?" Harry asked.

"They have a butterbeer floor. They give out free samples of their new butterbeers."

"Wow and it's not even 4 yet," Harry teased.

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Whatever. We can always go later."

"It's fine," Harry said, shrugging. "It would be a nice break to just relax instead of being active."

Malfoy nodded in agreement. They went to the 55th floor. Harry could smell the various flavors of butterbeer down the hallway. They approached the Butterbeer Brewery and could see all the various small samples floating at the counter. They went over to the counter to view the samples.

"Whoa. This one is a Blue Pixie Dust. You think it's really made out of pixie?" Harry asked, eyeing the blue drink.

Malfoy glanced at it and then grinned. "Why don't you try it?"

Harry reached out and the sample floated into his hand. He drank it and realized it was a sour and sweet taste. He couldn't really place what it tasted like either.

"It's not bad," Harry said.

Malfoy reached out to try the next one which was a pinkish color. Harry watched him swallow it in one gulp.

"Sweet. Whoa, and a little spicy at the end there."

Harry smiled. "But it's good?"

"Yeah," Malfoy said. "I've never had a butterbeer flavor I don't like."

After sampling a few more they sat down at a table and ordered the one they liked best. Harry got the Buttershrake, which was a butterscotch flavor mixed with the flavor from the spines of the shrake fish creature. It was sweet but also very smooth and fresh. Malfoy got the Dragon's Breath butterbeer, which literally came on fire. Once the flame cooled it had a torched flavor mixed with dragon egg juice, which apparently tasted a lot like buttermilk. It also had a hint of Fire Whiskey in it to add to the flavor.

Harry liked his so much he drank the first one pretty quickly and then ordered a second one.

"I really like this place," Harry said.

"Of course you would," Malfoy said, smirking.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I highly doubt you'd pay for something you didn't like."

Malfoy just shrugged. He finished off his drink and then ordered a second one.

"So, Potter, are you going to tell me what was bothering you?"

Harry felt the warmth of the butterbeer flood him. "What?"

"The other day when you were pissed off and you said you didn't want to talk about it. What was that about?"

Leaning back in his seat, Harry sighed. "It's nothing."

"It's obviously something," Malfoy said, leaning his elbow on the table. "So spit it out."

Harry glanced over at him. He was feeling very relaxed and warm. He wasn't sure if it was the butterbeer or the fact that he wanted someone to talk to (or maybe both), but he decided to tell Malfoy.

"I got in a huge fight with Ron."

"Oh, I see," Malfoy said. "What about?"

Harry swallowed his butterbeer rather quickly. "Er, well, mostly my job. He had invited me to this Quidditch night and I had to work," Harry lied. "Anyway, he was upset because we haven't been able to see each other much, especially since he left. Since he was back, and he's not sure for how long, he really wanted to spend some time together. He felt that I was blowing him off, that I thought my job was more important than our friendship."

"It is," Malfoy snorted.

Harry glared at him. "Okay. The whole point of talking to someone about your problems is so they can make you feel better."

"Well clearly he was the one in the wrong. Your job is important. If it had been an opportunity for him to go pretend to dragon-train, he would've jumped at the chance over Quidditch night with you."

Harry stared at him in surprise. Malfoy actually had a good point. "Yeah, I guess. And it's not like I think he's completely in the right. He did have a few good points. I do sometimes make excuses not to hang out – "

"Who can blame you," Malfoy interrupted.

Harry rolled his eyes. "The point is that I know he's in the wrong, but I'm a little bit to blame for not trying harder to make more time. And he feels betrayed by that. I don't know. The way that he sounded…"

"What?" Malfoy asked, urging him to elaborate.

"It's just – he sounded like he didn't want to be friends anymore."

"Oh, please, over something as stupid as that?" Malfoy retorted with a laugh.

Harry gave him a look and Malfoy's smirk faded.

"You really think he wouldn't want to be friends after that?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know, but he made it sound like that."

"He was just probably blowing off steam, Potter. There's no way that Weasel would give you up as a friend. First of all, you're famous."

"Great, thanks for implying that he's only friends with me for my fame."

"Second of all," Malfoy said, giving him a look. "You all like saved the world together. If that doesn't bond people together for life, I don't know what will."

The blond began to down the rest of his drink. Harry stared at him, watching him shake his long bangs out of his eyes. He never noticed before but his eyes were actually very gentle. In school he used to think his eyes were hostile and arrogant, but maybe it was an act; a façade he put up to hide the fact that he was insecure or scared. Surprisingly, Malfoy was actually making him feel better. A wave of guilt hit him. Here he was going behind Malfoy's back, having friends and the Weasleys as his family. Malfoy had nothing so far as Harry could tell; no friends, no family, just himself. Yet he was putting in effort to make Harry feel better. While he didn't doubt that Malfoy had very much wanted to visit this resort, because he had said so, he also was thinking of Harry and how he had never been.

After finishing his second butterbeer, Harry decided to try a different one. "Which one are you going to choose?"

Harry was feeling extremely content as he stared over at Malfoy. He felt a bit fuzzy, like he was on cloud 9. Malfoy raised an eyebrow but looked at the menu.

"I think I'm going to try The Dementor's Hug. It's a pretty strong one so it's going to be my last one. Are you sure you won't collapse if you get another one, Potter?"

"I'm fine," Harry said, waving it off. "I think I'll try the Rainbow Erkle then."

Malfoy snorted. "I think you're going to be smashed after this next one."

"I've had three butterbeers before," Harry said.

"These are specialties, Potter. And the one you're getting now has Rum Lightning in it. It's just as strong as Firewhiskey."

"Does it really look like lightning?" Harry asked.

Instantly, he got his answer. His drink came over and peering into the glass he could see it erupting with electricity.

"Wow!" Harry exclaimed.

Malfoy just smirked knowingly.

"So, Malfoy, are there any problems you want to ask me advice on?" Harry asked boldly.

The blond raised both eyebrows. "What makes you think I have problems?"

Harry's heart skipped a beat. "Er, because everyone has problems."

Malfoy snorted.

"Oh, come on. I shared with you."

"Potter, there's nothing that I need help with."

"None of your Slytherin friends giving you a hard time?" Harry blurted out curiously.

The blond stared at him for a second. Then he took another sip. "No, Potter. Most of my friends are dead or in Azkaban, or on House Arrest."

"Oh, sorry," Harry said.

Malfoy shrugged. "Thankfully I don't have drama like you."

"Well, you're lucky," Harry said.

"I guess," Malfoy said.

Harry finished his butterbeer and Malfoy finished his before they left. Harry felt like he was walking on air. Thankfully he had his balance in tact but he had to go a bit slower than usual.

"Having issues, Potter?" Malfoy joked.

"Not as many as you," Harry retorted.

Harry staggered a bit and Malfoy snickered. "I think you do."

"Whatever," Harry muttered. "I'm perfectly fine. If I were smashed I wouldn't even be able to walk this good."

"Maybe you're not completely smashed but you're beyond buzzed."

Harry shrugged and then nearly tripped over his own foot. Malfoy laughed. "You're amusing when you're drunk, Potter."

"You're pretty good there yourself."

"I'm not as drunk as you," he said, snickering. "I'm thinking we should eat dinner in our rooms. We wouldn't want you to embarrass yourself."

Harry reached over and shoved Malfoy playfully. In his semi-drunk state he nearly stumbled into the nearby wall. Harry laughed in response.

"That was completely your doing, Potter," Malfoy said.

"It was still funny," he retorted.

They got to their rooms.

"Think you can make it two feet by yourself, Potter?" Malfoy teased.

Harry stepped forward to retort and this time he did trip over his own feet. Malfoy caught him and straightened him up.

"All right there, Potter?" Malfoy teased.

Harry stared up into his face, at his smile and glimmering eyes. Malfoy was being so nice and he had even made him feel better about Ron. He felt so bad that he couldn't do something in return for him.

"Well, goodnight, Potter. Don't crash before you eat dinner or you'll regret that in the middle of the night," Malfoy said.

Before either of them could react, Harry bent over and crushed their lips together. His foggy mind took a minute to catch up. His eyes had instinctively shut. Harry's body started falling forward since he was losing his balance. Harry heard their kiss break as their lips detached. Suddenly, Malfoy's hand wrapped around his neck, pulling him back. Malfoy's lips covered his over and over, turning his head as he did so. They kissed deeply. Harry was drawn to how smooth the lips were on his own. Malfoy's other arm moved around him pulling him close and Harry felt Malfoy's warmth seep off of him. Their chests touched and Harry could feel Malfoy's heart beat. The blond's hand began to fall lower until his fingers reached the bottom of his shirt. Slowly, Malfoy's fingers dragged up Harry's bare back. Harry instinctively wrapped his arms around Malfoy and their lips broke apart once before coming back together passionately. The kissing felt so nice that his foggy brain didn't catch up with him until Harry tripped again. His body lurched forward, breaking the kiss as Malfoy staggered backward until he hit his door. Malfoy was then leaning up against his door, out of breath, with his arms still around him. That's when it all caught up to him. Harry realized just what had happened. His face burned as he unwound his arms from Malfoy.

"Er, sorry," Harry muttered quickly.

Malfoy unwound his arms from Harry as well. He couldn't even look Malfoy in the eye very long. He briefly glanced at him and then looked away as he headed toward his room door.

"Er, goodnight," Harry managed to say before going into his room.

He closed the door behind him and stared at the wall. He had kissed Malfoy. He hadn't even been thinking about it, it just happened. More than that, he had really enjoyed it. He could still feel the heat that had begun in his groin after Malfoy's fingers trailed up his back. Did he like Draco the same back? Or was he the one who was lonely?

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**To Reviewers: **

**DeiStarr**: Thankssss! I'm so glad you liked that chapter! I know! I'm building up suspense a lot, muahahahah! Yeah, it will be interesting when things start coming into the light. =) I will update asap!

**09michv**: I'm so glad you like this so far! That was a good question you had about apparating. I brought it up in this chapter so it's hopefully clear. Apparating is the fastest way to travel but there's a limit on distance and they've been going to pretty far places. Plus, Harry hasn't taken his Apparating License yet so legally he really can't Apparate. Hope that helps!

**HPmeghan7474**: Tehehehehe, I know, I'm going to tease you a lot actually as I continue to build up suspense with everything, but you were rewarded a bit in this chapter! And you will continue to be rewarded a little bit with every chapter! =) I know you're anxious for the romance, but it will come, promise! If they just jump into the sac together (as nice as that would be), it would be over. I'm giving you something to look forward to. =) Yes, unfortunately in these beginning stages Harry is still confused about his feelings. It's hard to trust someone you've considered an enemy for so long, especially with Draco's family history. So you can't blame Harry for being skeptical. We all have inside information and know how awesome and hot Draco is so Harry will get there eventually. Hehe! I will update asap!

**Rising Phoenix1835**: Thanks! I'm so glad this feels believable to you. As I stated in the private message I sent (hopefully you got it), I know that it's frustrating right now. I'm creating drama. And trust me, drama can be on-the-edge-of –your-seat annoying, lol! But it wouldn't be a great story without it, right? Like I told HPmeghan, Harry does have trust issues. Think of all he's been through. That and the fact that Draco has always been an enemy to him, especially with his family history and all. So you can't blame him for being skeptical about Draco. It's true he's invading his privacy by spying, but honestly he didn't know exactly what the potion was going to do. He didn't realize he would have access to his memories and dreams. That is a very intimate and personal thing to have access to. He does feel guilty. And like I said, I will not give anything away as to whether or not it bites Harry in the ass later. =) I will update asap!

**Stellato**: Lol! Thanks for reviewing. Hope that means you like this story!

**Guest**: Hey! Thanks so much! I'm so glad that you like this story! And I'm glad you think their characterization is believable as well as the progression of their relationship. I know everyone is getting anxious for the romance to start and it is starting! It will continue to progress steadily and I promise it won't be too long now before it really progresses! Yes, impending darkness, got to have that right? Lol! Thanks for the suggestion about the library. I think you're right that the language in a book should be more bland so I'll definitely keep that in mind! I will update asap!

**Missy Padfoot:** Hey Missy! I'm so sorry but Harry didn't cancel. Was it only because he got into a fight with Ron? =) I know that it's still frustrating because although this story is kind of reversed with Draco initiating things, they're both not on the same page right now. Harry is just confused. Hopefully this chapter gives you hope that he is not just using Draco or going out with him due to pity. Cyprian is still going to be a semi-important character, don't worry, but I won't give anything away. Yes, he is annoying. That's the point though is that through Harry's eyes, he is annoying because he's not really interested in him. He's not completely oblivious to Cyprian's feelings. As you can see by the end it was important for Harry to go to the resort. Things will continue to progress steadily, but just know that it obviously isn't perfect and there is still that impending doom, I mean, mystery, overhead. Hehehee! Hope you liked the chapter! I will update ASAP!


	11. A Dark Cloud

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 10: A Dark Cloud **

Harry lay in bed staring up at the ceiling. He could not believe what he had done. He had kissed Malfoy. His heart had been racing so fast he hadn't been able to think straight. He wasn't even sure it had been a conscious decision. Malfoy had just watched him. He still had a semi-surprised look on his face as though he couldn't believe that had happened either. He knew Malfoy wouldn't forget it, but he didn't know what to say.

When he woke up the next morning, he was feeling tired and groggy. He ordered breakfast from the menu. A part of him wanted to stay cooped up in the room so he wouldn't have to face Malfoy. Unfortunately, during the middle of his meal there was a knock at his door. He swallowed nervously. Slowly, he got up and approached the door. He hesitated and took a deep breath before opening it. Malfoy was standing there in his black button-down shirt and jeans. The blond gazed at him. Harry awkwardly opened the door all the way so he could step inside.

Malfoy gazed at his pajamas. "Did you just wake up?"

"Er, yeah, kind of," he said, turning away.

"You were pretty far gone yesterday," Malfoy said, crossing his arms. "Do you remember anything?"

Harry turned. He saw Malfoy's crossed arms and sensed he was nervous. He swallowed and then nodded.

"Yeah. Sorry that I…you know."

Malfoy snorted. "Why are you apologizing?"

"It's just – I don't normally do that until I'm more comfortable," he added uncertainly. "I just like to take things slow."

"It's fine, Potter," Malfoy said, shrugging.

Harry nodded. "So, what are we doing today?"

"I was thinking we should see the dragons."

He licked his lips nervously. "Okay."

"So get dressed. I'll meet you outside in ten minutes."

Harry nodded and watched Malfoy leave. He got dressed and finished up his meal. When he met Malfoy outside, they both went to the 23rd floor for the dragons. Harry was impressed by theme for the rooms. Each hallway had a different theme depending on the dragon. For dragons that live in hotter climates, the hallways resembled a desert. For ones that lived in colder climates, there was fake snow trickling down.

Where the real dragons were was even more amazing. They had various dragons in their natural climates. One section was charmed to be frigid with mountains and snow. Another had the desert and various hills, caves and mountains. Another one had a tropical climate with a large tropical forest and another had mountains of trees over twenty feet high.

"Incredible," Harry whispered.

There was enough room in each climate for a dragon to be comfortable. Each climate only had one dragon so there were four total. The one that Harry was struck by was the white dragon that had black on its wings and tail with crystal blue eyes.

"I want to ride that one," Harry said.

Malfoy grinned. "That's typical."

"What? Why?"

"Because it's the nicest looking dragon, the more gentle one. I want that one."

Harry gazed at where he was pointing. There was a fiery-red dragon with gold spots on its wings and the tip of its tail was black. Harry then noticed a woman dressed in what appeared to be a thin, shiny, bodysuit. It was gray. Malfoy saw where he was gazing.

"That's the expert. She's wearing a fire resistant bodysuit."

"So that's how they keep from getting burned."

"Of course," Malfoy said, grinning. "You _are_ playing with fire."

Harry gave him an amused look. They both went down toward the expert who was in conversation with a cluster of people. A couple of people were already in line so they had to wait their turn.

"You can go first," Malfoy said.

Harry nodded and went up to one of the expert's assistants who was there to help him get on the white dragon. Harry approached the large beast and looked into its big, beautiful blue eyes.

"Hey there," Harry said quietly. The dragon just stared at him. He knew a few things from Hagrid about dragons, and he learned a lot more from riding one. Hermione was full of facts after their brief ride too. Based on the color and climate of mountains and trees, a temperate climate, he figured this dragon was most likely from Romania. "_E în regulă; încredere în mine_," Harry said in Romanian. He only knew some words. He told the dragon "it's okay; trust me."

The dragon responded by raising its head and walking toward him. It bent its head down toward him and Harry reached out to rub it. He heard people gasping behind him. He was certain he heard a distinct snort of annoyance from Malfoy somewhere. The assistant was watching him and smiling.

"Do you need help?" she asked.

"I think I'm okay," Harry said.

The dragon bent down and Harry climbed up on its back. When he gazed around he saw Malfoy was approaching the expert. The expert was watching him. She had a smile on her face as well. She nodded toward him and Harry nodded back.

"_Zbura_," Harry said, commanding it to fly.

The dragon spread out its vast wings, which were probably ten to fifteen feet in length. Then it whipped them down thru the air. Harry felt his stomach jolt as they began to rise. He held on tightly with his legs, knowing the dragon couldn't really feel much through its thick scales, and placed his hands just in back of the ears, like Hagrid taught him. They soared up high above the mountains and began the ride over the trees. Harry felt the temperate breeze blow his bangs out of his face. He smiled in response. Flying on a dragon, a docile one anyway, was even more amazing than flying a broom. He couldn't even describe the feeling.

"_Frumos_," Harry said, which basically translated as "nice" or "beautiful".

The dragon made a deep, low sound in the back of its throat. As they began to angle around and do a circle, Harry saw Malfoy talking to the expert. He wondered what he was asking her. There was a puzzled look on her face. After the wonderful ten minute ride, the dragon began to lower to the ground. It was Malfoy's turn to ride and he was already being helped up onto the red dragon. As Harry slid off, he placed a hand above the nostrils and below its eyes.

"Mulțumesc," Harry said, thanking the dragon. The dragon made another sound and nudged him gently with its nose.

Harry laughed. The expert was suddenly beside him rubbing under the dragon's chin, which it seemed to greatly enjoy.

"You are quite a natural. Have you…," she trailed off and blinked. Harry's stomach twisted when he saw she was staring at his forehead. The wind had blown his bangs back. Harry quickly adjusted them.

"Er, thanks," he said.

She smiled knowingly. "Well, I never thought I would meet the famous Harry Potter. This is quite a treat this year."

"Oh, you come every year?" Harry asked, as they walked away so someone else could ride the dragon.

"Yes. For the past five years anyway. I've completed my journey around the world studying dragons. My name is Irena Bijuterie."

"You're Romanian?"

She smiled. "Yes. Well, half Romanian I should say. My mother was. What about you?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm not sure. I don't know very much about my family. I never got a chance to really learn about my history."

She nodded in understanding. "So, Mr. Potter, what brings you here?"

"Just a vacation from work," Harry said.

"Where do you work?"

"For Hellebore."

"That's an amazing company. I've heard all about them."

"Thanks," Harry said. "Er, I'm here with my friend." He gestured to Malfoy who was currently riding the red dragon with a large grin on his face. Harry smiled in amusement.

Irena smiled. "Yes, I met him."

"Was he asking you about the Onyx Dragon?" Harry asked boldly.

Irena blinked. "Why, yes, he was. I'm guessing it must be a hobby of his, dragons."

"Something like that," Harry said. "Do you know much about them?"

"Not really. I've never had the pleasure of seeing one. There have been only a few reports of them being seen and no one knows if those reports are accurate. In my travels I never came across one, but according to those who did glimpse one, they stay pretty isolated and hidden. I would love to learn more about them, if they do exist."

Harry nodded. "So what was he asking you about, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Not at all," she said, shrugging. "He just wanted to know if I had seen one and where they might be found. I told him it would be a waste of time, if not dangerous, to go searching for them. If you did come across one, I doubt they want humans to see them. Considering how isolated and hidden they like to be, I don't think it's a good idea for just anyone to go looking for them."

"Do you think they exist?"

"I don't know, honestly. I believe there are a lot of creatures out there that we don't know about so I would say it's definitely a possibility. If I do go back out in the field, I may look into it, but I did check out the places in the books where they were mentioned being seen. Those places have been checked out before, even by me, with no sign of them. If anything, they probably either live deep in high mountains or underground. That would be my guess."

Harry nodded. "Well, thanks for your time."

"Of course, anytime," she said, shaking his hand.

As he was shaking her hand, Malfoy was walking toward them. She went to go talk to others and Malfoy came over.

"She seems great," Harry said quickly.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "She is."

"So, what did you talk about with her? Did you ask her any good questions?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Not really. Just random ones. The flying was great! Did you see when he dipped down quickly like that?"

"Er, no, sorry, I missed it."

Malfoy looked annoyed. "Well, it was still a lot more fun that you going in circles with your dragon."

"It's not a competition, Malfoy."

The blond shrugged again. "So, Potter, what did you talk to her about?"

"The Onyx Dragon," Harry blurted out.

Malfoy's head whipped around toward him. He stared at him with slightly widened eyes.

"What? You never heard of it?"

The blond recovered and then just made a noncommittal noise. "Of course I have. They're mythical."

"Some believe they're not. Irena seemed to think anything was possible, even though she has never seen one before."

Malfoy stared at him. Harry stared right back. Inside, his heart was racing. The blond was definitely hiding something, but why would he need to know anything about the dragon?

"So, are you still getting a tattoo?"

"I don't think so. Not right now anyway."

"Where do you want to go next?"

The blond grinned widely. "How about back to our own floor for a Quidditch match, Potter? We'll see just who is the better Seeker."

"Fine. You're on!" Harry exclaimed.

**XXXXXXX**

Several hours later they emerged dripping with sweat.

"I won, Potter."

"It was a tie, Malfoy!"

"I caught the snitch in the end."

"We both caught it at the same time. You just happened to snatch it away from me faster."

The blond rolled his eyes. "They still declared my team the winner, but whatever makes you happy."

"I need a drink," Harry said, wiping sweat from his forehead.

Malfoy smirked. "Becoming an alcoholic are we, Potter?"

Harry glared. "I'm going into my room to change."

He showered and changed once he got to his room. Malfoy must have done the same thing because he looked refreshed too. They headed to the restaurant floor, which was the 45th.

Once they sat down, Harry instantly pressed on the Butterbeer he wanted. It was an iced one. He had only tried an iced Butterbeer once. Malfoy decided on an iced Nettle juice cocktail. Harry was so hungry so he ordered right away too.

"I guess we have to get back into the working mode," Harry said.

Malfoy swallowed his bite of food. "Yeah. It's not so bad though. We can stay until noon tomorrow. After that our rooms are booked for other people."

Harry nodded. "It was nice though."

Malfoy gazed up at him. "Yeah. It's always nice to get a break. Does that mean you're not worried about Weasel anymore?"

Harry shrugged. "A bit. I think it's good we both got some space though. I'm sure it will be fine."

On the inside, he was still tense. He wasn't sure Ron would come around when it had to do with Malfoy. That seemed like a deal-breaker. Hopefully he was wrong though. Malfoy had a good point. There was no way Ron would just stop being his friend all of a sudden after everything they had been through. He would probably first try to get Harry to quit his job.

"So, we don't have any assignments for tomorrow, right?"

Malfoy shook his head. "No. I doubt we'll have an assignment right away when we get back. It might be another couple days."

Harry nodded. "What are you going to do tomorrow then?"

Shrugging, Malfoy finished off his fire-blazed chicken. "I don't know. I might go run some more errands."

"You run a lot of errands."

Malfoy glanced up at him. "That's normal, Potter."

Harry raised an eyebrow. His heart began to race. Hopefully that meant Malfoy would be gone from the house for a while. He thought about how Malfoy had taught him to swim. It wasn't that Malfoy seemed bad, but he was still hiding something.

After dinner, they walked back to the rooms. Harry's heart was racing. He tried to calm it down, but he couldn't. He tried not to picture the kiss that had happened the previous night. He wanted to blame it on the butterbeer or on his stressful situation. The truth was he wasn't sure what to make of it. Harry was thinking about it and he was thinking maybe now was the best time to tell Malfoy he wasn't sure it would work out between them. He was confused, but he didn't feel like he was going into it with the right intentions anyway. It was probably better to break it off now and hopefully they could just go back to being partners like nothing ever happened.

They approached their doors. Harry glanced at Malfoy nervously. He wasn't sure how he was going to bring it up all of a sudden, or what his reasons would be.

"Uh, Malfoy," Harry started.

"What?"

Harry's body tensed. "Well, it's just…"

"Is this about the kiss from last night?"

Harry glanced up surprised.

"Potter, I understand you want to go slow."

"I know," Harry said quickly.

Malfoy glanced around as if making sure no one was listening. "Here, let's talk inside for a minute."

The blond walked into his room and Harry hesitated. He slowly walked in after him. Malfoy got them both a plain Butterbeer from the fridge.

"Here," he said.

Harry took it. "Thanks."

He had only had one drink so far so it was safe to have another. Of course, he was still going to drink it slowly just to be safe. Malfoy plopped down on one of the floating chairs. Harry did the same and sat in the chair across.

"I think it's funny that we've switched places."

"What?"

"Well, first I was embarrassed about kissing you. Now you're embarrassed about kissing me."

Harry smiled a bit. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

_Okay. I need to tell him I'm not comfortable dating. _

"So you liked it here?"

Harry glanced up. "Er, yeah, a lot. It's really great. You?"

"Yeah, not bad," Malfoy said.

Harry licked his lips nervously. Why was he having such a hard time saying it? Once he did, they could go back to normal. Nothing had happened between them yet. It wasn't like Malfoy would be that crushed, if he was even serious about him in the first place.

"So…," Harry started, as Malfoy gazed at him. He had a flashback of the blond helping him to swim. He hadn't teased him or insulted him.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow in question.

"Er, thanks for teaching me to swim," Harry said quickly.

Snorting, the blond leaned back in the chair. "No problem, Potter."

Harry nodded awkwardly. It was so hard to get to know the blond. Every question he thought to ask him, about his family, friends, hobbies even, all seemed like questions he wouldn't answer. While he didn't want to date him, he did want to become friends with him.

"When is that thing with Cyprian?"

"Oh, March 13."

Malfoy seemed to calculate in his head. "So three weeks."

Harry nodded.

"How long is it?"

"I think it said from 6-9. Not too long."

Malfoy pursed his lips and took a sip of his drink.

"Malfoy…," Harry said, trailing off. The blond's eyes locked with his again and he could feel his heart racing.

"What?" the blond asked. The light from the fire was illuminating Malfoy's eyes. From that angle they looked as though they were glimmering.

"I don't – " Harry stopped himself. "Er, I should probably get some sleep. I'm exhausted from Quidditch."

Malfoy nodded and stood up. He walked to the door with Harry. Turning around, Harry glanced at him. Malfoy caught his gaze and his lips curled upward in a small grin. Harry smiled back a bit, although he was quite tired.

"Goodnight," Harry said.

"Night, Potter," Malfoy said.

At the last second before completely walking out, Harry turned around again. "Thanks for the vacation."

The blond just nodded. Harry couldn't stare into his eyes anymore. He went back to his room and shut the door. He breathed out heavily and shook his head. He just hadn't been able to say it. Harry sat down. A part of him hoped he would find nothing in Malfoy's trunk. He actually wanted to be friends with Malfoy. Of course, if he ever admitted that to Ron, the red-head would probably send him to St. Mungo's. Harry put a hand over his chest. His heart was beginning to calm down. He needed someone to talk to. It obviously wasn't going to be Ron or Hermione. He knew just who it would be.

Harry went over to the nightstand and pressed on the owls/fun howlers and more section. He skimmed the list and found secure owls. An envelope with wings appeared once he pressed it. Harry wrote his letter and then it vanished out the window. Harry stared outside at the darkening sky and the tree tops surrounding the building. There were a couple mountains in the distance. It was quite a view.

The next morning Harry felt refreshed. Since they both woke up later they skipped breakfast and decided to go straight for lunch.

"I'm going to miss it here," Harry said as they sat down.

"Yeah," Malfoy agreed, glancing at the menu.

Harry stared at him. The blond locked eyes with him. "So, are you sure you don't want a tattoo? This is your last chance."

Malfoy raised his eyebrows. "Do you want me to get a tattoo?"

Harry flushed. "It's your choice. I'm just saying I don't want to hear you whine about it if you regret not getting one while we're here."

The blond stared at him for a minute. Finally he smirked. "Fine. I think I will get one."

Harry raised an eyebrow curiously. "Really? Where?"

The blond smirked. He took a sip of his drink. They both finished up their meal and went to the 3rd floor to get Malfoy's tattoo before leaving. They went into the place and Harry saw moving tattoos dancing on all the walls.

"There's a ton," Harry said.

"We 'ave more of 'em in the books. Or I can do anything you ask," a man said, approaching them with a grin.

"Oh, it's not for me," Harry said.

"I think I know what I want," Malfoy said.

The man gestured for Malfoy to follow him. They went toward a seat and Malfoy whispered something to the guy.

"Oh, right then," he said.

As the man turned to fetch his wand, Malfoy smirked at Harry who stared back curiously. Suddenly, the man summoned a curtain so Harry couldn't see.

"Okay. So where you want it?"

"Here."

"Alrighty. It will just take a sec."

Literally a second later the curtain disappeared and Malfoy was adjusting his pants. Harry stared at his pants and the blond met his gaze. He smirked again. Harry raised an eyebrow. Malfoy paid the guy and then they walked out.

"So where did you get it? And what did you get?" Harry asked.

"In a place I don't normally show off to people, Potter," the blond said with a smirk.

Harry blinked and flushed. "Oh, er, front or back?"

"Sorry, Potter. That's private information."

Harry pursed his lips. "It was my idea. I reminded you about getting one, you know."

Malfoy just grinned.

"You can't even tell me what you got?"

"Nope."

Harry glared. "Fine. Next time I'm getting a tattoo and I won't tell you about it."

Malfoy laughed loudly. "You? That's hilarious, Potter."

"Shut-up," Harry muttered.

The two of them went to the front desk to check out. Then they were provided another special flying car to take them back home. On the way back they both took another nap. Harry woke up before Malfoy and was tempted to pants him so he could see the tattoo. When Malfoy woke up and saw the annoyed look on his face, the blond snickered.

"What's so funny?"

"Still wondering about the tattoo?"

The way he smiled made Harry flush in embarrassment. "Shut-up! You can't tease me about getting one then withhold what you got. That's just cruel."

Malfoy put his hands behind his head. "Why does it matter what I got?"

"Because I'm bloody curious, that's why."

The blond laughed. "It's fun torturing you."

Harry glanced at him then rolled his eyes. "Well it would be for a former Death Eater," he shot back.

The blond's smile faded just a little. "Ouch. It's really getting to you, isn't it?"

"Yes, so stop being so amused by that!"

"If I did tell you what it was, would you ask to see it?"

"Well, of course I'd want…," Harry trailed off. "Hey, wait."

The blond smirked. "Oh good we're home. It saves you embarrassment."

Harry glared. "It saves you from being clocked in the head."

Malfoy snickered.

As they stepped out of the car in the neighborhood next door, Harry saw two secure owls perched on top of the house, as if waiting. They obviously didn't know where to find him. The resort probably had its own protections. The flying envelopes headed toward him. Harry stared at the handwriting on one and his stomach flipped.

"It's from Ron."

"Great," Malfoy muttered. "Is it an apology?"

"I don't know."

They flew to the house and once inside Harry opened it.

_ Harry, _

_Sorry for blowing up at you. I know I shouldn't have reacted that way. Hermione finally got back in touch with me. She can set up a time to go to lunch with us. In a couple weeks she will get a break from school. If you can make it for lunch someday soon, let me know. _

_~Ron_

"Yeah, it's an apology," Harry said. "He and Hermione want to meet up for lunch sometime soon."

Malfoy made a sound. "Who is the other one from?"

Harry opened it. "Oh, it's from Neville."

_Harry, _

_ I got your owl! I hope everything is going good. I would love to meet and catch up. Are you free Sunday?_

_ ~Neville_

"Wow. Aren't you popular."

Harry snorted. "Right."

He responded to Ron's owl saying he could do it any day that week. Then he responded to Neville saying he just got home and he could meet up anytime.

"What does he want?"

"Oh, just to catch up."

The blond stared at him then nodded. "Well, I've got to run some errands."

Harry's heart skipped a beat. "Okay. I'll see you later."

The blond nodded and walked back out the door. He wondered why Malfoy would wait until they were already inside. Maybe he wanted to know if Harry was doing anything first. Taking in a deep breath, Harry made his way up to Malfoy's room. The door creaked open and he glanced behind him. Slowly, he stepped inside. Malfoy had certainly made himself at home. There were clothes lying on the floor. Harry stepped over them to get to the trunk.

He stood in front of the trunk and swallowed. He murmured the password and the trunk clicked open. His throat constricted as the trunk lid popped open. There were vials of potions, probably some of them the same ones Harry had seen him with before. There were some herbology books. He carefully lifted up some of the books to see if there was anything hidden beneath. It all looked relatively normal, although Malfoy had enough potions to start his own class. At the very bottom of the trunk, however, Harry found a very old book. It was black and brown, and withered at the spine. It had a large 'S' on the front. Upon opening it, Harry saw that the pages were shimmering. That meant the potion was still active in his system even though it had been over two weeks. He wondered if he hadn't had any more dreams or memories because he hadn't wanted to, and he had avoided focusing on them.

Skimming through the pages, Harry's heart sank. It was a Dark Arts book. Not just any Dark Arts book, but one with rituals like the one Voldemort used to get his body back. These dark rituals were not only illegal but extremely powerful and most likely very difficult to do, unless you were Voldemort. Harry even found a section about Horcruxes, although there wasn't much. Voldemort had probably discovered the rest on his own. This must have been the book that he saw in the memory, the one that Malfoy had taken from the house.

_Narcissa can't use magic because she's on House Arrest. Maybe Malfoy was taking it not just so his parents wouldn't get in trouble in case the Aurors found it, but maybe he wants to use one of these dark rituals to help his parents. Maybe even help Lucius escape Azkaban. _

He didn't have time to read through the entire book. He wasn't even sure which one Malfoy was planning on using. He wasn't good enough at potions to know what ingredients were in each of the vials either. What was Malfoy planning on doing?

Harry left the room feeling sick to his stomach. It was just as he feared. He wasn't sure which of the dark rituals Malfoy was planning on doing, but he had been hiding something. He quickly left the house. He had to clear his head. He flew around to try and come to terms with what he found. He stopped mid-air when he saw a flying envelope making its way toward the neighborhood. It was still a distance away so Harry met it half-way.

_Harry, _

_I am free all day today as well! I will head on over to Hogsmeade. You can meet me at The Three Broomsticks whenever you get this owl. _

_~Neville_

Harry instantly flew toward Hogsmeade. He was so grateful he would have someone to finally talk to. Neville was already seated at a table in the Three Broomsticks and he waved Harry down.

"It's so nice to see you," he said as Harry sat across from him.

"You too," Harry said with a smile.

"I'm so glad that you contacted me. I was getting a little worried when I hadn't heard from you in a while, especially after what you told me last time," Neville said.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry. I've been busy with work and…well, there's a lot I need to catch you up on."

He ordered a butterbeer as Neville had done.

"Is it about the Inferi attack?" Neville whispered.

Harry leaned forward. "It's mostly about Malfoy. They haven't really figured anything out about the Inferi attack."

Neville nodded. "Oh, yeah, so did that potion work?"

"Er, yes and no."

"I don't like the sound of that," he muttered.

Harry sighed. "Everything is so messed up Neville. I don't even know how I got here."

Neville leaned forward. "It's okay, Harry. You can talk to me."

Harry glanced around first before continuing. "The Minister is concerned that someone is after me to open this secret place that's protected by Parseltongue. They learned this from the former Death Eater Macnair who is now dead, tortured to death by someone unknown."

Neville gasped. "That's not good."

"And Malfoy and I are not just partners anymore. Someone attacked our apartments, as you know, and so we're both living at Grimmauld Place. It's the safest place to be. And we live on different floors, but…things have kind of happened."

Neville's eyebrows furrowed. "Happened? What do you – wait! You mean…," he trailed off, and his eyes widened. "You two slept together?"

"No, er, not that bad," Harry said. "Malfoy kissed me, or tried to, and then later on when I was drunk I kissed him."

"Blimey! I never pictured you two together in anyway."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said. "I don't even think I like him that way. I don't know, but I was just wary because of the potion. It let me see some of his memories and while I can't get the whole story, the last memory I saw was of Malfoy sneaking into Malfoy Manor and taking a book from a very secretive place. The Aurors obviously hadn't found it and he took it. I think I found that book in his trunk and it's a Dark Arts book full of dark rituals. I don't know which one he plans on using, but the potion allows me to see pages that he's touched. So I know he skimmed through his dark ritual book, and I know he was looking for information on some plant hybrid-creature and an Onyx Dragon."

"Both mythical, supposedly," Neville said. "So, you think he's going to use this book to do something? Like free his parents?"

"I don't know. Why else would he have taken it? Why else would he be hiding it in a password-protected trunk with a bunch of vials of potions?" Harry asked pushing his bangs out of his eyes.

Neville leaned back in his seat and exhaled loudly. "Well, you can only speculate right now. I mean, with the fresh clean start that Draco was given, you'd think he wouldn't screw it up."

"I know. And he's got a good job. And one of the memories was him having a huge fight with his mother so I don't know if they reconciled. But it just doesn't make any sense."

"His mother could be threatening him," Neville suggested.

Harry sighed. "I don't think so. She threatened him in the memory and Malfoy said he didn't want to get in any more trouble."

Neville sat there for a minute silently. "Well, the thing is either you'd have to read his mind to see what he's up to, or ask him out-right."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "I'd really prefer not to have him potentially kill me for snooping around his things."

"True. But…I mean, do you like him?"

"I don't know. I've never been attracted to guys," Harry said quietly. "And I can't picture us being together. I don't know why I kissed him."

Neville sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Well, my advice to you would be to figure out if you do in fact like him. If you do, you may just want to confront him about your suspicions. If you don't, I would break it off now."

"Yeah, I just…Malfoy had a dream about us…you know, kissing, and I just can't tell if he's serious about me or maybe he wants to use me."

"Use you? For what?"

"I don't know. It probably doesn't have to do with me. Maybe he just wants to gain my trust that way."

Neville pursed his lips. "Well, it seems unlikely that he would want to gain your trust that way? If your trust was all he wanted, why not just stick with being partners?"

Harry sighed. "I don't know. So you think I should either break it off with him or confront him?"

Neville nodded. "You can let the Minister know your suspicions if you break it off with him and leave it up to the Minister to make a fair conclusion instead of putting the pressure on yourself to decide whether or not to trust him. You know, Harry, my honest opinion is that you do want to trust him. That's why you're having trouble with this."

"So…you think I like him?"

"I don't know about that. Only you can figure that out," Neville said, smiling. He shrugged. "But I do think you obviously like being partners and you're afraid to ruin that. That's why you're sneaking around instead of confronting him."

"Yeah, you're right. I don't want to piss him off and make matters worse. I just feel like he would lie to me if I confronted him. I tried asking him simple things like why he wanted to talk to a dragon expert, but he just skips around the truth."

"Well, that's true, but if he doesn't think you know anything he won't be the one to bring it up," Neville said, taking a sip of his drink. "He may not want to talk about it for fear you'll judge him or contact the Minister or something. Although it strikes me as odd that after you're letting him stay in Grimmauld Place for free and helping him out with assignments, why he would choose to do something illegal right under your nose. Especially since he knows you're good friends with the Minister. Not to mention you defeated Voldemort."

"Yeah. It doesn't make sense. That's why I keep thinking he's trying to gain my trust or distract me with trying to kiss me and everything. Maybe he's trying to make me uncomfortable enough so I won't go looking into things regarding him."

"Yeah, I'm not sure," Neville said, shrugging. "Honestly, it does sound suspicious, but on the other hand, if you don't have the whole story you may be coming to the wrong conclusion."

"What else could it be?"

"Well, maybe he did steal the book so that his parents wouldn't get into any more trouble. I mean, I'm sure he still cares about what happens to them. Maybe he skimmed the book out of curiosity and that's why it wasn't focused on just one page. Maybe he's not planning on using anything in the book."

"Yeah but then what are all the potion vials for. And why is he researching Onyx Dragons and other things?"

"I don't know. That's why I think the best solution is to confront him. Or let the Minister handle it."

Harry bit his lip. "I'm sure you're right."

"Malfoy may find out one way or another about what you're doing. It might be better to come clean now, if you do want to stay partners with him."

"I just need more information."

"Maybe. But if you keep sneaking around Malfoy might catch you."

"I know. This is so complicated. So you really think I should just confront him?"

Neville nodded. "Yeah and if he lies to you or you feel he's avoiding the truth somehow you can tell the Minister. Or threaten Malfoy that you will tell the Minister if he doesn't explain himself."

Rubbing his temples, Harry sighed. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

"I can't believe you two kissed. How did Ron and Hermione react?"

Harry gave him a sheepish look.

Neville's eyes widened. "You haven't told them?"

"No. Ron found out the hard way that me and Malfoy are partners. He blew up at me. Maybe you're right. Maybe it's best to come clean and be honest, but even doing that with Ron will still have the same result. I don't know what Malfoy will do when he finds out what I've been up to."

"Yeah…well, unfortunately the longer you wait the worse the outcome. So, are you planning on talking to Ron and Hermione about it?"

Harry nodded slowly. "Well, er, I may not mention the kissing part. It's not like me and Malfoy are a couple. If we were, I'd tell them. I'm just going to tell them that we're living together and everything. Just get it out in the open."

Neville smiled and patted his hand. "I know it's difficult, but I'm sure you'll feel better once it's over. So, who do you think is behind the attacks?"

"I have no idea. That's why I think I'm so suspicious of Malfoy. Not that I believe he would purposefully put himself in danger. I just – I'm suspicious because the hexes on Malfoy's apartment were apparently not lethal. They were just hexes to cause boils and other weird things. I keep thinking, what if the person is trying to make it look like he's after Malfoy too so that I won't get suspicious."

"So…you think that Malfoy knows who's behind the attacks?"

"I don't know. Maybe he is in the dark. Maybe it's someone his parents sent and maybe all Malfoy wants to do is free his parents. I don't know. But I just find it interesting that his hexes were not life-threatening like the Inferi attack. Maybe the person didn't know Malfoy would be there. Maybe they didn't know we were partners."

Neville sighed. "Well, it's all speculation right now. I think talking to Malfoy about it would help. You are a good Legimen. So you would know if he was lying to you or withholding the truth."

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

Neville glanced at him. "Don't worry. If Malfoy really wants to be your friend, or if he really likes you as more than a friend, he'll get over it. Eventually."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I keep saying that about Ron too. Anyway, I'm sorry for bothering you with all of my issues. How are things with you?"

"Good. The same. I have a chance to go on a trip with a Herbology expert. He's really well-known. He knows everything about anything Herbology-related. His name is Davin Rigelsby. I don't know if you've heard of him. He's like 85 years old and still out studying. He's written several books too."

"Wow! And you get to go with him?"

"Yep!" Neville grinned. "For the past few years he's been working with different Herbology companies choosing 5 employees each year to go with him for 3 months. I leave next month. He's going to come here to pick me up. Apparently he picks up all his assistants in person. I'm so excited!"

"Good for you, Neville. So what's your main goal?"

"I want to be just like him. I'd love to write books some day and explore the world. Eventually I think I'd like to teach Herbology once I've done my own research and explorations."

"That sounds like a good goal. Maybe you could teach at Hogwarts."

"Yeah, I was thinking about that," he said, smiling. "Do you still like your job?"

"I do. Dimitri's great and so is the company. The assignments are interesting too."

"Good, I'm glad it worked out," he said. "And don't worry. I'm sure everything with Malfoy and Ron will all work out."

"Thanks, Neville. You're a good friend."

Neville smiled. "Thanks. You are too!"

They both got up. Their empty drinks floated away. Harry gave him a hug and said his goodbyes. When he was on his way back, he noticed yet another secure owl trying to find him. He stopped, wondering if it was from Ron again. He opened it.

_ Harry, _

_ I am ready to have a tour of the amazing Grimmauld Place! Please let me know if you are free tomorrow. _

_ ~Professor Slughorn_

Harry sighed. He charmed the envelope to turn over so he could write a reply to be sent back immediately. He wrote that it was fine for him to come tomorrow. He suggested 10 a.m. knowing Malfoy would probably still be asleep. He told him to meet him at the King's Cross Station. It flew away and Harry landed and went inside the house. He thought about what Neville said. Maybe he should just get it over with and confront Malfoy.

Just as he began to plan out what to say the blond burst through the door. He saw Harry and tensed for a second but then just sighed irritably and headed for the kitchen to put his groceries away.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Nothing," Malfoy muttered.

Harry walked down the stairs into the kitchen after him. "Really? That's what I said a couple nights ago. I'm thinking we've switched places again."

Malfoy glanced at him and snorted. "Hardly." The blond hesitated. "I just couldn't find something I needed, that's all."

"That's it? That's what you're throwing a tantrum about?"

"Potter, if you're going to be annoying then go bother someone else," Malfoy drawled. He slammed the fridge and disappeared up the stairs.

Harry inwardly cursed. There was no way he was going to confront Malfoy when he was in a horrible mood to start. He would have to do it when Malfoy was in a good mood. Sighing, he went over to the fridge to make something for dinner. It was already past six. Malfoy didn't come down while he was making his food so Harry decided to eat up in his room. His thoughts were solely on the book that he forgot to mention Slughorn's arrival for tomorrow morning.

**XXXXXXXXX**

The next morning, Harry was up early to prepare for Slughorn. He made sure to clear any signs that he and Malfoy were living there together. He only wanted the Minister to know that. He made sure the place was clean before he left for the train station. Slughorn was already there waiting. He was still pale and had dark circles under his eyes, but he seemed to have more energy.

"Professor. Have you been waiting long?"

Slughorn grinned. "Not at all, Harry. Nice to see you again."

"You too," Harry said, nodding. "You can follow me."

They both took off on their brooms and as they approached the neighborhood they landed. Harry then decided it would be best to say the password in his head just to be safe. He had done the same thing with Malfoy. It was safe if only he and the Minister knew the new password to reveal Grimmauld Place.

The building appeared in between the other two. Slughorn laughed. "How marvelous!"

They headed inside and the door closed behind them. Slughorn looked around. He put his hands behind his back as he walked into the living room.

"My, this is a very nice place," he said.

Harry nodded. "Er, thanks."

He glanced upstairs hoping that Malfoy wouldn't come down anytime soon.

"It must've been very hard carrying such a burden," Slughorn said, as he walked toward the fireplace.

"Er, fighting Voldemort?"

"Well, yes, but I was referring to having to track down all his Horcruxes and everything. That was quite a feat I'm sure. It's very impressive. I mean, you must've had to do so much research and guess-work, not knowing very much on top of being one yourself. I can't imagine someone your age going through that."

Harry's heart stopped. He distinctly heard Slughorn mention that he had been a Horcrux. The frightening thing was that nobody except Ron and Hermione and the Minister knew that. It was possible Voldemort figured it out and told his Death Eaters, especially when Harry didn't die from the killing curse again. But that meant…

Harry swallowed. "Professor, I was wondering. Would you be able to come back for the full tour later tonight? I forgot that I'm supposed to check in at work to see about my assignments."

Slughorn turned and cocked his head. "Oh?"

"Yeah, er, I'm really sorry. If you want we can finish this floor and do the rest tonight, or tomorrow. Whatever works better for you."

"Oh, of course," he said, stepping forward. "One question, Potter. Your fireplaces, are they all connected?"

"Er, yeah."

"Ah, how perfect," he said.

Suddenly, Slughorn whipped his wand out and cast a spell. The fire vanished with a puff of smoke and the entire fireplace froze over. Harry's heart began to race a mile a minute. He reached inside his pants to grab his wand.

"Er, professor…," Harry started, trying to act as casual as possible.

"Was it something I said that clued you in, Potter?"

Harry froze. Slughorn was staring at him with cold, unblinking eyes. Harry glanced at the fireplace then at the front door.

"I wouldn't try that. Escaping is not possible now. Unless of course someone comes through the fireplace, but there's no reason for the Minister to come here, is there?" Slughorn smiled. "After all, this place is the most secure, isn't it? No one can possibly get in, unless they have your passcode."

Harry instantly thought of Kreacher. The house elf could still get in, but he hadn't seen the house elf for a while. Kreacher was obviously staying at Hogwarts. If Harry could somehow get a message to him.

Slughorn stepped forward.

"Sir, what's going on?"

"Very good question, Potter. And I'll explain it," he said, raising his wand.

Harry anticipated the move and jumped out of the way of the ropes trying to bind him. He ran up the stairs. Slughorn was already pointing his wand at him on the stairs so Harry ducked into his bedroom for cover. He had to get to Malfoy! They had to get out of there. Harry quickly whispered the password into the fire. He hoped Kreacher could still hear it even though all the fireplaces had frozen over. Harry's eyes caught sight of Snape's potion he had brewed sitting in the vial. He grabbed it and gulped it down. He prayed that it worked.

The door burst open and Harry jumped. Slughorn came in and Harry waved his wand so things started flying at him. Slughorn blocked them as Harry ducked behind the bed.

"Come now, Potter, let's not play these childish games."

Harry said a spell in his head and vines shot out from his cabinet. They grabbed Slughorn's arm and when he was momentarily distracted, Harry ran for the door. Just as he got outside in the hallway he felt sharp vines grow up from the floor and wrap around his body. He heard footsteps behind him and his body was wheeled around.

"Why are you doing this?" Harry asked, struggling.

Slughorn grinned. "Why, indeed, Potter. I don't know if you remember this, Potter, but I had the great opportunity to fight Voldemort alongside you at the Battle of Hogwarts."

A flashback struck him. It was of Slughorn wearing his emerald green silk pajamas as he was dueling Voldemort. They had all been dueling everyone, all the Death Eaters and Voldemort, but he distinctly remembered Slughorn sparring with Voldemort. Then it hit him. The warning that Luna had said to him a while back: the green horn; he is not the same. She was referring to Slughorn, when he had been wearing his green pajamas. Something must've happened to him when he was fighting Voldemort. It all struck him like a lightning bolt.

"Take your time figuring it out, Potter. I can see you're thinking."

"You…you're a Horcrux."

Slughorn laughed and clapped his hands once. "Very good, Potter. You see, Voldemort, being as clever as he was, needed to make sure that if he did lose at the Battle of Hogwarts that he would have someone on the inside to help him. Of course, he didn't count on dying, but he still planted the Horcrux inside of me. It was very hard, being as he was weak from already splitting his soul 7 times and then on top of you destroying those 7 Horcruxes, but he managed because he is Lord Voldemort after all."

"And that Horcrux, it's been whispering to you, hasn't it?" Harry asked, wide-eyed. He remembered the pendant and how it had tried to trick Ron when he attempted to destroy it. It put suggestive thoughts in his head and that was even when it wasn't touching him. He couldn't imagine what the Horcrux inside of Slughorn had been whispering.

"Yes, Potter! You are smarter than you appear. I knew better than to approach you too soon. You are not one to be underestimated," Slughorn said, grinning. "Once I heard you were here, I knew the perfect scheme. Just invite myself over. After all, only you can lead people here. My inferi attack might have been a bit much. I hadn't intended for you to have a partner. You see, I had been battling with the Horcrux, fighting it, if you will. And I became so enraged and I just had this desperate urge to kill you. So I sent a hawk to intercept your letter, after learning from Aurors where you worked. Then it was easy enough to figure out where you'd be, but I didn't think it through. See, I'm not as clever as Voldemort. You see, I need you alive, for the time being, Potter. If I had killed you…well, that would've been a mistake. See, I have so much more in store for you. My Master told me the plan not too long ago and it was brilliant. Once I surrendered to the Horcrux, I learned things that you can only dream about."

"You can fight it, Professor!"

Laughing, Slughorn shook his head. "Ah, Harry, your words are useless. No one will be able to hear your cries for help here. Crucio!"

Harry screamed in pain as the curse ripped through his body, stabbing his muscles. Once it stopped, Harry was breathing heavily. Slughorn was just standing there smiling at him.

"I need you alive but that doesn't mean I can't hurt you."

"Voldemort's dead!" Harry exclaimed. "So killing me isn't going to change that."

"I said I'm not going to kill you," Slughorn said. "Master needs you alive because you're the key."

"To what?"

Slughorn grinned. Suddenly, his head whipped around. Harry's stomach flipped when he saw Malfoy coming down the stairs. He had heard Harry's screams no doubt.

"Malfoy, get out of here!" Harry exclaimed.

Malfoy saw him tied up and Slughorn with his wand. He tried to run back upstairs but he didn't have his wand to defend himself. Slughorn was quick and had him flying off his feet in a matter of seconds. Malfoy fell to the ground and groaned. He raised his head to see Slughorn pointing his wand at him.

"Well, well, this is certainly a surprise. I wasn't aware you two lived together. I suppose that makes sense though being since you're partners. You must've been afraid for your life, Draco," Slughorn said.

The blond stared up at him fearfully but with furrowed eyebrows.

"Relax. I'm only here for Harry. If you cooperate, I won't have to kill you."

Malfoy's eyes widened.

"Stay put or I'll tie you up too," he said. "Now, where was I? Oh yes, right. You're the key, Potter. And I'm going to show you why."

He grinned viciously and unbuttoned his robe. There was a pendant around his neck that was glimmering.

"It took me a while to perform the dark ritual capable of holding souls from Dementors, but I did it."

"That's why the Dementors went missing!"

"Yes, yes," he said waving his hand. "Now hold still, Potter."

Slughorn approached him and Harry struggled violently. Slughorn slowly removed the pendant and placed it around Harry's neck.

"This pendant once in place will allow me to do the dark ritual, a second one, that requires your assistance. You see, this pendant also allows me to not just keep the Dementors' souls but the Dementors along with them. So the Dementors stuck in this pendant I can also summon out at anytime to aid me with this ritual. Their sacrifice is also required."

"What ritual?" Harry asked, as the pendant latched around his neck.

"You'll see soon…," Slughorn trailed off. His smile faded and his eyebrows furrowed. Harry glanced down at the pendant. The glimmering stopped the second it snapped around his neck.

"That's impossible! Why isn't it working!?" He bellowed.

Malfoy winced. Slughorn began pacing back and forth. He had a crazed look about him.

"It has to work. I know it does! Everything Master said has worked until now! It should work!"

"Wait, Voldemort speaks to you?"

Malfoy's head whipped toward him and Harry saw the frightened look in his eyes. Harry glanced at him. As Slughorn was pacing, Harry mouthed to him to run. Malfoy glanced at Slughorn then back at him. Harry nodded.

"Tell me why it's not working!" Slughorn bellowed, pointing his wand at him.

"I don't know! I don't even know what ritual you're doing," Harry exclaimed.

Slughorn breathed out heavily, spitting in the process. "Think, Potter! What is out of the ordinary? There must be something!"

"I don't know!" Harry yelled.

Slughorn's eyes latched onto Malfoy who tensed. Slughorn pointed his wand at Malfoy. "Crucio!"

Malfoy's eyes widened before the curse struck his body. The blond screamed in agony as he writhed on the floor. Harry felt his heart clench at the sight.

"Stop!" Harry exclaimed. "I'm thinking!"

Slughorn lifted the curse and Malfoy lay gasping for breath. He turned over slowly as he wrapped his arms around himself. Harry thought about it. What was out of the ordinary. What would interfere with a ritual.

His eyes snapped open. "I took a potion."

"What potion, Potter?" Slughorn asked, approaching him.

Malfoy's gaze lifted to him and Harry felt his entire body freeze. "Well, besides my vision potion, I took…the Astrindgo potion."

"Astrindgo…I know that potion," Slughorn muttered as he paced again. "Ah, yes, it's a potion used to track an enemy or someone you don't trust. Who is the target of the potion?"

Harry could feel Malfoy's gaze on him. If Snape's potion worked, hopefully Slughorn wouldn't know he was lying. All he could think was that he had to protect Malfoy. If Slughorn discovered that Malfoy was the target, he might kill him.

"It's…someone from work. A guy named Cyprian."

Harry glanced over at Malfoy who stared at him in surprise. He just needed to buy some time.

"Hmm, very well then. I must acquire this Cyprian. You are going to come with me to assist me, Potter."

"Fine. Let Malfoy go."

The blond glanced up at him with wide eyes.

"So he can go alert the Minister? I don't think so, Potter. But if you cooperate he won't have to die. Now then."

Slughorn raised his wand toward him. Suddenly the floor began to shake. Slughorn lost his footing and fell. The carpet on the stairs began to grab at him. Harry gazed at Malfoy who locked eyes with him and jumped up. He ran over to loosen the bonds now that Slughorn was distracted.

"Use my wand," Harry said.

Malfoy grabbed hold of the wand that was stuck awkwardly in Harry's hand through the ropes. He untied Harry that way.

"Come on!" Harry exclaimed, grabbing Malfoy's hand.

They raced down the steps past Slughorn who cursed and tried to grab them. They ran downstairs and almost ran right into Kreacher.

"Kreacher! You got my message!"

"Of course, Master," Kreacher said, snapping his fingers. "The intruder is being dealt with."

"Thank you, Kreacher! Is the fireplace still open?"

"Yes. Kreacher had a hard time getting through."

The house elf followed them into the kitchen. The fire was small and it was slowly dying.

"You go first," Harry said, nodding.

Malfoy nodded in thanks. He crawled through the fireplace.

"Come on, Kreacher," Harry said, picking up the house elf. The house elf made a sound of disproval as Harry held onto him and threw them both into the fireplace.

They emerged in the Hogwarts kitchens and Harry sealed up the fireplace from that side.

"Don't anyone try to go through," Harry said, looking at all the house elves who had stopped what they were doing.

"Harry Potter!" Luffa said, running over to hug him. It was one of house elves that had been friends with Dobby.

Harry hugged him back. "Hey Luffa. Sorry, I don't have time. We have to see the Headmistress right away."

"Follow me!" Luffa exclaimed.

He ran through the kitchens and they followed. They ran all the way up to McGonagall's office through the hallways.

"Harry!"

He glanced behind him to see Ginny's surprised expression. She was with her friends probably heading to class. Malfoy had glanced over as well but they were both too panicked to respond. They nearly crashed into Filch as they made their way up.

"Hey! I thought you delinquents didn't go here anymore!" Filch yelled.

They reached the headmistress' office and Dobby gave them the password.

"Thanks."

"Of course, Harry Potter," he said, smiling. "Anything for you."

With that he bowed. He gazed briefly at Malfoy. Malfoy smiled awkwardly. The house elf nodded to him and took off back toward the kitchens.

They entered the office and McGonagall stood up as they entered.

"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Potter," she said, alarmed. "What's –"

"There's no time. Voldemort's trying to come back. We were attacked! We need you to contact the Minister right away!"

"Oh good heavens," McGonagall said, gasping. "Not again. Of course, right away! You both wait here and don't leave!"

She disappeared out of the office. Harry breathed out heavily. Malfoy gazed at him.

"So, is that why you wanted to go to the thing with Cyprian? Because you thought he was behind everything?"

Harry glanced up. He swallowed nervously. "Er, not exactly. Malfoy, I…," Harry trailed off as it suddenly struck him.

"What?"

"Cyprian! He's in trouble! I gave Slughorn his name! We have to warn him!"

"McGonagall said – "

"That trap isn't going to hold him long especially since Kreacher is back here with us! We have to try! Come on!"

Harry rushed out of the office with Malfoy behind him.

"Potter, I don't know that this is a good idea. What if he's already there?"

"He won't do anything publically. There's a lot of people that work there. We just have to warn Cyprian and everyone there."

They ran to a wall which was a secret passage toward the entrance. It would save them time. As they ran through the tunnel, Malfoy came up next to him.

"Are you sure we can't just leave it to the Ministry?"

"It's my fault he's in danger! Besides, the Minister will come here first to talk with us. That's wasting time! Hopefully Slughorn isn't on his way there yet."

"Potter, I don't know…"

"You don't have to come," Harry said, annoyed.

The blond looked taken aback. "Of course I'm coming. I owe you. You saved my life back there by telling him what he wanted to know."

Harry felt the stirrings of guilt again. "Okay. Just keep your guard up."

Malfoy nodded. They both got outside.

"Crap! We don't have our brooms."

"We can use theirs."

"No time. We need to Apparate. We've been there before so we'll be able to do it. It's the fastest way and it's not too far. It should be in the range."

"Should be?! Potter, you do realize if it's too far we could lose limbs by Apparating!"

"We should be fine," Harry said. "I've Apparated once when I was running from Death Eaters to a location that I wasn't sure was close enough, but I lived."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Why is it I'm always doing stupid things when you're around?"

"Come on, Malfoy! I'm taking a risk too. I don't even have my license yet."

Malfoy's eyes shot up to his hairline. "Seriously? Well, I'm sure the Minister will look the other way for you."

Harry glared. "You ready?"

Malfoy inhaled deeply and nodded. The both of them Apparated with a quick pop. A second later they were in front of the Helebore building. He looked over to see Malfoy a little disoriented but completely intact. They both ran inside the building.

"He might be on the top floor or he might be somewhere else!" Harry exclaimed in a panic.

"Oh, wait! I remember hearing that he also goes to the lab on the third floor a lot. Let's check there," Malfoy suggested.

Harry nodded. They raced into the elevator. When it hit the third floor, they dashed out and nearly collided with Cyprian and Liaeda.

"Harry, Draco," Cyprian said, blinking. "What's the rush?"

"Cyprian! You're in danger! We've got to go!" Harry exclaimed, grabbing his arm.

His eyes widened. "What? What are you talking about?"

"We have to bring you to Hogwarts. The Minister is on his way."

"We should let Dimitri know first," Cyprian said. "What's going on?"

"No time to explain. If you want to live, just listen," Malfoy said.

Cyprian's eyebrows furrowed.

"I have a better idea," Liaeda said.

Harry glanced up at her and didn't have time to react as her blank eyes stared at him. A second later he felt his knees buckle.

"Potter!" he heard Malfoy exclaim. He heard Malfoy slump down next to him.

Cyprian made a sound as well before he heard yet another thump. Then there were footsteps.

"Good job my dear. Take a nice, deep rest now," Slughorn's voice echoed from somewhere above him.

Harry's eyes fluttered before he blacked out.

_TO BE CONTINUED… _

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. I injured my knee and have been taking it easy. I hope to have the next chapter up sooner. Thanks to those who reviewed!

To Reviewers:

**DeiStarr**: Yay! I'm so glad you liked the chapter. Yes, Ron is being an ass, lol! And yes, finally the romance is starting! Wahoo! It's still going to go at a steady pace though, but more to come soon, promise! I will update asap!

**HPmeghan7474**: Lol! Awww, good I'm glad you like the buildup! That works out because the romance is still going to develop at a steady pace, but don't worry more to come soon! Yeah, it is hard because in fanfiction rarely are they both like: "I love you!" and then they just get together and live happily ever after, lol! It is a long journey, but I hope by the time it's done the waiting and the journey and everything will be worth it! =) Awww, yay! Thanks so much! I'm so glad you love the wizard resorts! I know, I wish they were real too, lol! Half the time I live in my head because what I imagine is so much better than reality. Haha! I promise to update asap!

**Missy Padfoot: **Yay! I'm so glad you liked this chapter! Yes, it's good he didn't cancel. Harry just needed a different environment, away from work, so he couldn't run away from his feelings, muahahaha! More to come soon, promise! The romance will be building up steadily from here on out, but at a believable pace. Still, I promise I won't leave you hanging too long. =) Yeah, it's difficult with Ron because he obviously doesn't see the side of Malfoy that Harry is right now. I won't spoil what happens with him, but I think you kind of get an idea after this chapter. Hahaha, yes, doom and mystery. It is hovering over them! Tehehehehe! They are in for a nice long journey together. But I really hope that all this suspense and mystery and journeying will all be worth it once it's over.

**DragonMistress333**: Awww, thanks so much! I'm so glad you like this story so far. And I'm very glad it's believable. That's my main goal. Honestly, looking back at my previous D/H stories, I don't find them as believable as this one. So I hope that my writing does improve with each story I do. I will definitely update asap!

**Monsters-Need-Love-Too**: Yay! I'm so glad you liked this chapter! Yeah, I thought the swimming would be a nice touch. Harry had to learn to swim eventually, right? Heheh! =) Yeah I can totally see him doggy paddling! Haha! Yes, finally the romance is really starting too. It will still go at a believable, steady pace, but I promise more to come soon! I won't leave you hanging too long. I will definitely update asap!

**Rising Phoenix1835**: Aww, thanks! I'm so glad you liked the resort! Hahaha! Yes, well, you were kind of right about Harry. Instead of using butterbeer as an excuse he's rather just avoiding the issue entirely, lol! That seems to be his thing right now, but you can tell he's trying to figure out his feelings too. Or at least I hope I portray that. Yes, I agree with you! The way I have it planned, the romance and the friendship go hand-in-hand and they progress at a steady pace together. Don't worry, as much as everyone wants it, they're not going to jump each other right away. =) I am all about making it believable. But like I did mention in the private message I sent you, the glaring and sniping is not going to completely go away. I mean, Draco's personality is still stubborn and snarky. That's what makes him such a fun character to write! It will get better, but even when dating it's not going to go away because that's their dynamic. You will still get to see Draco's sensitive side of course, but if I made Draco too nice, or not snarky anymore, he wouldn't be Draco. =) I have a lot in store for them so hopefully when it's all said and done you will be satisfied with the way the romance and friendship progress. I will update asap!

**runswithvamp**: Thanks for the review! I'm so happy you like this story! So yes, I will update within a week usually. Weekends are the best time for me to work but I still have studying to do. Still, I promise not to make you wait too long for an update! I like to keep chapters coming out at a steady pace. =) I will update asap!

**Fred****:** Thanks for your review! Yes, I know that Draco bragged about being a Death Eater, but in my story that's because he had to. I mean, he couldn't tell Crabbe and Goyle (whose fathers are Death Eaters) that he's petrified and doesn't want to be a part of it. He'd get killed or tortured by Voldemort. This will be explained a little bit later on too, but it was Draco's father who suggested to Voldemort (in my story) that Draco would be the perfect candidate since he had easy access to Hogwarts, but unlike Crabbe and Goyle he was smarter and more resourceful. I hope that helps! I usually always stick to the books, but I also create my own spin on things, and other times just completely make things up.


	12. A Silver Lining

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 11: A Silver Lining**

Harry groaned as he opened his eyes. It took him a minute for his eyes to adjust. It was so dark. He blinked several times. He moved, realizing that he wasn't bound. When his hand touched the ground as he rolled over, he felt it was damp. He sat up and looked around. He was in some sort of cavern.

"Potter."

Harry wheeled his head around to see Malfoy leaning up against the wall. He looked weak and pale.

"Malfoy! Are you all right?" he whispered.

"Depends on what Slughorn plans on doing with us," Malfoy said.

He glanced over and Harry looked in the same direction. Cyprian was still unconscious on the ground. Liaeda wasn't there. She was probably left behind after being controlled with the Imperius Curse.

Harry got up. "Where is Slughorn?"

"I don't know. I woke up a few minutes ago and he wasn't here."

"Sorry," Harry said. "You were right. We shouldn't have gone after Cyprian."

Malfoy shrugged. "Nothing we can do about it now, Potter. Let's just get the hell out of here."

Harry felt in his pocket.

"I have your wands."

Harry jumped. Malfoy too wheeled around as Slughorn came into view. He had come from the tunnel behind him. He was sickly pale and practically bald.

"This is a very secure location," Slughorn said, gesturing around him. "It's protected by Parseltongue, which I can speak thanks to Master's Horcrux inside of me. Much like you could," Slughorn said, narrowing his eyes. "Master knew that it was unlikely you would wield such a gift, especially with your family history."

Harry swallowed. His fists were clenched in anticipation.

"What does he want from you?"

Slughorn laughed. "I will explain it to you, Potter, since we're safe here," he said, summoning ropes.

Harry made a sound of discomfort as ropes grabbed his arms and legs, attaching to the walls of the cavern.

"This place has been used for generations by Slytherin families, namely Voldemort himself. There are many treasures down here that you couldn't hope to know how to use them. Instead of having me explain everything, first I will show you."

The pendant around his neck glowed brightly. It began to turn his veins black, seeping through his skin. Harry and Draco watched in horror as a Dementor was summoned from inside the pendant. Instantly, it began to head toward Harry. Struggling violently, Harry tried desperately to think of a happy moment. The first thing that came to mind was the vacation he had with Malfoy. Then the Dementor switched, having sensed someone else. Its sights were set on Malfoy who helplessly scrambled away until his back hit the cave wall. He was trapped. Harry struggled harder watching fearfully as the Dementor reached out an arm toward Malfoy.

"Stop! Come here," Slughorn commanded as the pendant glowed.

Malfoy was breathing heavily. He had a terrified look on his face. The Dementor turned and turned its hooded head as if in curiosity. Then it headed toward Slughorn.

"Now you will see, Potter, what true sacrifice is."

Harry's eyes widened. "Professor, don't! He's not worth it!"

Slughorn laughed manically. "That's where you're wrong. I know things that you don't. Magic, abilities, things people would never imagine were possible. The only person who has really succeeded in unlocking these mysteries is Lord Voldemort. Don't you see…he's the greatest wizard ever."

Harry shook his head back and forth. He turned his head down, but Slughorn waved his wand to force Harry's head back up.

"You will watch, Potter."

The Dementor reached out its bony hand toward Slughorn's face. Slughorn grinned even as the bony hand grabbed his jaw roughly. The Dementor bent its head down as it opened the hole for a mouth. Slughorn's body jerked as the Dementor attached its mouth over his. Harry could see his eyes rolling back in his head. His body jerked again. The Dementor pulled away and Harry saw the vapory wisp that came out of Slughorn's mouth and disappeared within the Dementor. Slughorn's blank, lifeless gaze stared out. The Dementor turned again toward Harry. Harry's eyes widened considerably. He was trapped and unable to move. He saw Malfoy's fearful expression, watching as the Dementor closed in on him.

Harry could hear the screams in his head. He could see Sirius dying all over again. Then it stopped. The pendant around Slughorn's neck glowed again. A sharp, blinding lightning bolt seemed to burst from the pendant and struck the Dementor. The Dementor howled, opening its hole so wide that Harry could see a glimmer of light at the bottom – the soul that he had just sucked out. Suddenly the light, followed by many others flew from the Dementor's mouth. Once the last wisp was out, the Dementor began to crumble until it fell to the floor in a pile of ash. The souls that had been inside the Dementor were sucked into the pendant. Slughorn's body began to crawl with the black veins once again. His gaze flickered. Suddenly, his pupils dilated.

Slughorn inhaled deeply and blinked once. His gaze settled on Harry and his lips curled into a wide grin.

"Ah, Harry Potter…it's been too long."

Even though it was Slughorn's body, it was not Slughorn's voice. Malfoy tensed in the corner. Cyprian began to moan as he started to come to, but Slughorn whipped out his wand and blasted him with a stunning spell. Cyprian collapsed back down again.

"Forgive my appearance," the voice taunted. "As you can see, I must borrow another's body. My soul is incomplete. This is only a piece of it."

Harry's eyes widened. It couldn't be. "Voldemort," he whispered.

Voldemort laughed. "Indeed, Potter. You really thought it would be that easy to get rid of me. I always have a back-up plan. Although I must admit, I really didn't think you would succeed in getting rid of all my Horcruxes. I won't make the mistake of underestimating you again."

Harry struggled to break free of the binds.

"It's futile to try and escape," Voldemort said, glancing over at Malfoy who was still standing in the corner staring at him. "You see, I figured out why you survived the killing curse again. The Horcrux I accidentally placed in your body protected your life. Even though the Horcrux was destroyed, it left its mark. Dark magic like that can't be completely destroyed, Harry. So while our bond through your scar was severed, your body still remembers my Horcrux. You see, your body, your soul was fused with it. That is why you can still speak Parseltongue even without the Horcrux within you."

Breathing heavily, Harry stared at him wide-eyed. He gazed down at Cyprian then back up at Voldemort. The Dark Lord followed his gaze and sneered.

"Ah yes, you're wondering what I have in store for you and your friend here. Well, it's really such a shame to have involved him. I didn't anticipate this complication, that potion you took. Slughorn obviously brought him here thinking that I would be able to reverse the potion so that the ritual can work. However, the fool doesn't understand the power of that potion."

Voldemort twirled his wand in his hand as he stepped closer. "Unfortunately, that potion binds you completely with the other person, meaning I can't kill him without killing you and I need you alive."

Harry's eyes widened. So Malfoy's life was protected by the potion. If he had known that, he wouldn't have put Cyprian's life in danger. If Voldemort found out Cyprian wasn't the one, he would kill Cyprian and then possibly take Malfoy hostage. He couldn't allow that to happen either.

"Why do you need me alive?" Harry asked.

Voldemort looked amused. "Because, Harry, your body remembers my Horcrux. Slughorn was a candidate for the same thing, but you're even better. My old body was destroyed you see, and because of the fact that I have an incomplete soul, even if I could get my old body back, I would be too weak to do much. So my only option was to control this fool into getting the ingredients and making the dark rituals I needed so that I could find the key. You are the key, Potter. Your body carried my Horcrux for 17 years. Your body fused with it, adapted to it, became one with it. It left its imprint."

Harry felt his entire body freeze with terror. "You…want to take out my soul too for my body?"

"No, it's much more than that," Voldemort said, chuckling. "No, Potter, I need your soul. Your soul has the imprint of part of my soul in it now. And being since my soul is incomplete, I need a complete soul."

Harry's heart skipped a beat as he stared at Voldemort in disbelief. The Dark Lord approached him until he was only a foot away. He stared straight at him.

"If I transfer into your body with this ritual, I can bind this last Horcrux of mine with your soul, making a complete soul and thereby taking over your body permanently."

"NO!" Harry shouted. "I'd rather die!"

Voldemort laughed coldly. "I'm sure you would. Not only would I have your reputation, and all your resources and inside contacts, I'd have your friends and loved one in the palm of my hand."

Harry shook his head. "I won't let you."

Voldemort's eyes narrowed. He then gazed over at Malfoy and then Cyprian. "You don't have a choice, Potter. You're trapped here with me and all I have to do is wait for that potion to exit your system. Once the potion is gone, your bond with this boy will be gone and I will be free to take over your body. This body will only last me so long. Any other body without a Horcrux having been in it would only last a week at most. This body will last me longer because of my Horcrux that took root. Your body, however, would be permanent. That's what I need. I have no way of getting my old body or being able to keep it alive, so your body and soul will have to do. Actually, I think it's the perfect ending for you, Potter," Voldemort said, closing in until they were face-to-face.

"After all you've done to sabotage my plans for so long, I get to _be_ you, to corrupt your mind and make you do things you never would. I will become one with your soul. All your memories will become part of me. We will be like one, Potter. We will be inseparable and once I take root with your soul, I will begin to dominate as I did with Slughorn."

"You already tried to possess me once and it didn't work!" Harry exclaimed desperately.

"That was different. That was when we had the bond," Voldemort said, gazing at his scar. "That bond has been broken so it will make it easier to possess you. Now, tell me when you took this potion."

Harry clenched his jaw. Voldemort stared at him unblinking.

"Not going to cooperate, Potter? That's okay."

Voldemort went over to Cyprian's body and grabbed him by the hair. "I may not be able to kill him to risk killing you, but I can still have his soul taken out."

Harry remembered what he read about the potion. That it would bind them mind, body and soul. That meant that Voldemort was probably bluffing. He wouldn't be able to take out one soul when it was bound to another. If that's indeed what the potion meant.

"Our souls are bound so you can't take out either of our souls. They would have to be taken out simultaneously, which isn't possible by one Dementor."

Voldemort's eyes narrowed. "Clever boy."

He dropped Cyprian back the ground roughly. "Still, once the potion wears off I'll be able to do the ritual. I know that the potion lasts two weeks, Potter. If you and your friends want to stay here to be tortured for two weeks, that's fine with me."

Harry glanced over at Malfoy who swallowed nervously. The blond locked gazes with him.

"You've been awfully quiet, Draco," Voldemort said. "Have you sided with Potter now? Betrayed your family?"

Malfoy couldn't look Voldemort in the eye, but Voldemort forced him to. Malfoy made a sound of discomfort as his neck was harshly rooted in place.

"I knew you were weak from the beginning. When your father approached me and offered you up as one of the youngest members of my Death Eater clan, I was skeptical."

Harry stared at Malfoy in shock, but the blond couldn't look at him. He could only stare fearfully at Voldemort.

"He promised me that you were worth it, that you had been groomed from a young age to follow in your father's footsteps. He said that you were perfect. You were much smarter than you appeared, more cunning, and that you had inside access to Hogwarts and to Potter. I knew about your rivalry with him, you see. That was the perfect advantage and I agreed. I thought, there's no way Dumbledore would ever attack or even suspect a student even despite your family history. When you figured out a way for the Death Eaters to enter Hogwarts, I was very much impressed, but I still saw that your heart was weak. You were not as ruthless as your father. And here you are, living with the famous Harry Potter, using him as a shield to protect your own life. Well, if it's any consolation, Draco, I was never after your life. That would be a waste. In fact, I wasn't even the one who attacked your apartment."

Harry's head shot up in surprise. He had been trying to break free of the bonds. Voldemort turned away from Malfoy to gaze at Harry.

"If you two are friends now, I could always kill him. After all, once I take over your body I can't have any witnesses around who know the truth, now can I? No one can know I'm you."

Voldemort began to approach Malfoy who cowered in the corner. He was defenseless without his wand so he had no way to fight back. Harry felt his heart racing. His throat constricted when he saw Voldemort raise his wand toward Malfoy. If Voldemort tried to kill him and it didn't work, they would both know the truth. He knew he would have to tell Malfoy, but if Voldemort knew…he would kill Cyprian. He had to bide his time. Voldemort was obviously still weak in Slughorn's body. He was using magic with only a piece of his soul controlling the body and the wand. He didn't know how long the body would last before it died, but hopefully not too long.

"I took the potion three weeks ago," Harry said.

Voldemort stopped and turned, lowering his wand. He looked vaguely amused. Glancing at Malfoy briefly, Voldemort headed back around toward Harry.

"Three weeks, Potter? Don't lie to me," he hissed. "Crucio!"

Harry screamed and attempted to thrash while in the confines of the ropes. Voldemort allowed the curse to last longer than Slughorn had done it. By the time Voldemort lifted the curse Harry was sweating and breathing deeply. His muscles ached painfully and every nerve in his body was on fire.

"When Slughorn was going to attempt the ritual earlier the pendant stopped working on you. He was going to do the second ritual first to get your body ready for the transfer and then he was going to suck out his own soul so that I could finish the last part of the ritual. It can be done either way, but I prefer this way better."

"I'm not lying," Harry said, trying to catch his breath.

"Then the potion should be out of your system. My patience is wearing thin, Potter."

"I don't know why it's lasting longer than it should," Harry said.

Voldemort stared at him for a minute. Harry prayed that Voldemort couldn't read any of the thoughts he didn't want him to see. He hoped he had brewed Snape's potion right.

"There must be a reason. There always is," Voldemort said, tapping his wand. "Have you taken any other potions?"

"The one for my eyesight," Harry said. He knew he had to escape. He was their only way out. He had to find a way out of the ropes.

"None of those ingredients would extend the potion," Voldemort said coolly.

Harry's heart skipped a beat. "I…I substituted an ingredient."

Voldemort's eyebrows furrowed. "What did you substitute?" he asked coldly.

"I substituted Shrake spines for the Ramora scale."

Voldemort cursed loudly in Parseltongue, causing Harry's body to tense. "That could extend the potion's lifespan for a month! I don't have a month!" he hissed.

Voldemort paced back and forth in fury. "I don't have a choice! I will have to use this pendant's ability to extend this body for as long as I can. I will keep you here until both potions are gone from your body! Until then…"

Voldemort's eyes gleamed in the darkness as they settled upon Draco again. Malfoy cried out as his body was flung across the floor. He hit the wall with his side and groaned in pain. Voldemort then approached the blond who struggled to get up. Harry struggled violently.

"I don't need both of you alive," Voldemort said coldly.

Malfoy trembled as Voldemort raised his wand.

"Avada Kedavra!"

_NO!_

Harry's mind was screaming as the blinding green light headed toward a paralyzed Malfoy. The second that it came out of the wand, Harry felt the ropes give. He tugged as hard as he could. One of his hands broke free. When Voldemort used magic with his already weakened state, the magic used to bind him was weakened.

In a matter of seconds the light hit Malfoy's chest and the blond let out a yelp. He instinctively tried to shield himself with his hands. Harry's eyes were wide and his heart nearly fell out of his chest. Suddenly, he saw Malfoy's hands move. The second that Voldemort saw Malfoy's surprised face as he stared at him, still alive, it all clicked. As Voldemort wheeled around, Harry used the same spell he had during the dragon attack with Malfoy to summon his wand to him. His wand flew out of Slughorn's robe and into his hand just as Voldemort's enraged eyes met his.

It all happened so fast. Voldemort's gaze landed on Cyprian, realizing Harry lied about him being the target of the potion. Harry didn't even say the spell aloud as he dragged Cyprian's body to the opposite end of the cave. The killing curse hit the floor where he had been seconds before. Harry shouted a spell that released his other arm from the constraint and he pointed his wand at Voldemort. Harry shouted a spell at him to try to disarm him. Voldemort dodged the attack, but Harry could tell he wasn't very strong in that body. Harry summoned Malfoy's wand to him. Voldemort howled with rage. His eyes turned red. Then he shouted a spell back at Harry, which was a simple blinding spell that Harry deflected. When the light vanished, Voldemort was gone. Harry stared at the tunnel.

"Malfoy, come on!"

The blond instantly staggered to his feet as Harry levitated Cyprian's body. They had to go through the tunnel to get to the entrance. Harry went first with Malfoy in toe. They raced through the tunnel. Harry was half expecting for an ambush but when they reached the entrance without a hitch Harry realized that Voldemort really did flee. He had to bide his time since he was so weak. He couldn't use too magic, especially not all at once. It probably made the body decay faster.

"_Open_," Harry hissed in Parseltongue.

The wall moved aside and Harry stepped out cautiously. Malfoy followed him a minute later. They both looked around to make sure Voldemort wasn't there. Malfoy was breathing heavily beside him. He was holding his wand a bit unsteadily.

"I don't know where we are. I don't think it would be a good idea to try Apparating," Harry said. "The Minister was supposed to meet us at Hogwarts. I'll try to alert them."

Harry then raised his wand and sent sparks up into the air. He hoped that it would alert them. He gazed around and didn't sense that Voldemort was near, but without the bond between them he couldn't be sure. He was grateful his scar didn't sear with unbearable pain now every time Voldemort was near.

Harry turned to Malfoy, who was still looking around uncertainly. "Are you hurt?"

Malfoy glanced at him. "No," he said firmly.

Nodding slowly, Harry felt his heart sink. "Er, Malfoy, I can explain ab—"

"Don't bother!" Malfoy snapped. "I was an idiot to think Cyprian would be the target. I should've known all along."

The blond clenched his wand harshly. Before Harry could speak he felt someone. It was a presence. Harry instantly put his hand out in front of Malfoy and pushed him back. The blond glanced at him in surprise. Harry glanced around as the hairs on the back of his neck tingled. Malfoy gazed around as well nervously. Suddenly, Harry gazed upward when he heard a swooshing sound. All the tension left his body when he saw the Minister and Aurors all heading down toward them.

"Harry!" Kingsley exclaimed.

"Kingsley!" Harry said, waving.

They all landed. Instantly Kingsley saw the unconscious Cyprian. "What happened?"

"It's Voldemort," Harry said.

The Aurors all stiffened at the name. Several of them wheeled around with their wands pointed. Kingsley's eyes narrowed and he gestured for the Aurors to spread out.

"Where is he?"

"I don't know. He escaped back through this entrance. He could be hiding in the swamp," Harry said gesturing toward the damp forest-like area nearby. "He was in Slughorn's body."

"Slughorn?" Kingsley asked surprised. "He was at the Ministry Celebration. So that's why Slughorn was asking about you!"

Harry nodded. "We're all okay, but he plans on trying to possess my body like he's doing to Slughorn."

Kingsley's expression darkened. "We won't let him, Harry."

Nodding, Harry gave him a little smile. "I know. Actually, er, this potion I took prevented him from being able to do that. It was an unintended consequence, but a good one."

Malfoy looked away and Harry's stomach clenched uncomfortably.

"There's nothing around this area," an Auror said. "Should we look in the swamp?"

"Yes. We need to check everywhere! He is posing as Professor Slughorn. Spread out and search!"

Kingsley turned back to them. "Are either of you injured?"

They both shook their heads. Kingsley went over to Cyprian.

"He's just unconscious. He's okay," Harry said. "I hope he doesn't remember anything."

Kingsley nodded. "We'll take him to St. Mungo's just to be safe. You two should get back to Hogwarts. I'm going to have Graven escort you both back there and Misila is going to take Cyprian to St. Mungo's. I will be there in a while after we search the area for Voldemort to talk with you both."

Harry nodded. He and Malfoy went with Graven who levitated them both while he flew on his broom. They headed back toward Hogwarts and Harry glanced at Malfoy a couple of times, but the blond was looking ahead the entire time. They arrived at Hogwarts to see McGonagall standing there waiting.

"Oh thank heavens. When I saw you two were gone, when I specifically told you not to leave, I almost had a heart attack!"

"I'm sorry, Headmistress," Harry said glumly. "It was my fault. I panicked because a friend of ours was in danger because of me and I thought he would be dead by the time the Ministry got here."

"Always taking things into your own hands, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said, sighing. "Well, I'm glad you're both all right. Why don't you both have a seat in my office. I'll have the house elves bring you both something from the kitchen. I imagine you're hungry."

Harry nodded. They both headed toward her office.

"Malfoy?"

"Don't speak to me," he said.

"Please. Can I just explain."

"There's nothing to explain," Malfoy said, wheeling around. "You used me, Potter. Is that why you pretended to like me?"

"Hey! I didn't pretend anything! I took that potion before all of that happened," Harry said. "Will you please just stop for a minute?"

"I'm not talking about it here, Potter! I'm not talking about it at all!"

"Fine! Let's go into the Room of Requirement. I just need you to hear me out."

"I'm not interested!" Malfoy snapped.

"Please, Malfoy," Harry said, grabbing his arm. "Just give me one minute. That's all I'm asking."

The blond stared at him and then wrenched out of his grip. He stomped into McGonagall's office and Harry sighed heavily. He followed suit. They both sat down in a tense silence. Thankfully a couple minutes later McGonagall returned with the house elves. She let them relax and eat before she started asking questions. By this time, Dumbledore's portrait had awoken.

"Harry, it's so good to see you," he beamed.

"Dumbledore!" Harry exclaimed happily. "It's good to see you too. How are you? Er, well, that's an awkward question. Nevermind."

Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm fine, Harry. How have you been?"

"I've been fine until recently," he said as Dumbledore stared at him, puzzled. "Voldemort's back."

Dumbledore's eyebrows furrowed. "How? You destroyed all his Horcruxes."

"Apparently not all of them. He created one at the last minute, after I had destroyed all his Horcruxes and weakened him. He was fighting Professor Slughorn at the Battle of Hogwarts and he placed a Horcrux inside of him. I'm not exactly sure how he did it, but it was his back-up in case he lost the battle."

"My word," McGonagall said, shaking her head. "Will we ever be rid of him?"

"Don't despair, Minerva," Dumbledore said. "He is not invincible. Voldemort can't be very strong with just one Horcrux."

"He's not. He's very weak. He wants my body as a permanent fix."

McGonagall gasped. "Oh dear Merlin."

Just then the Minister entered the room with the other Aurors. Harry stood up.

"I'm sorry, Harry. There was no sign of him," Kingsley said.

Harry's shoulders slumped.

"Harry, tell me exactly what happened and what you know already."

"Well, it's obvious he killed Macnair. He was controlling Slughorn with the Horcrux inside of him, feeding him ideas and corrupting his soul. In order to take over his body though he needed to use a dark ritual. He did it after having Slughorn's soul sucked out by a Dementor. He said that his soul needs to be complete in order to stay in a body, but only certain people, ones with Horcruxes, he can possess. Slughorn had one so he was able to possess him, but not for long. He couldn't bind with his soul. He had to get rid of Slughorn's soul in order to have his own body so his soul could take over, but being incomplete he's very weak in the body. He told me his body won't last forever. That's why he wants my body. I had a Horcrux in me since I was a baby until I was 17."

"Ah," Dumbledore said gravely. "So your body and soul would be compatible with the Horcrux. That would make him have a complete soul, to bind with yours."

"What? Albus, that's insane," McGonagall said. "He can't just take over Harry's soul."

"I'm afraid he could, over time," Dumbledore said sadly. "Harry had a bond with Voldemort, a very strong magical one that is incredibly unique. Sadly this would make him the perfect candidate for Voldemort to possess him. If that happens, Harry would eventually lose himself to the Horcrux. His memories and dreams and aspirations would all become entangled with Voldemort. They would eventually become one soul."

"I'd rather die," Harry said coldly.

"Harry, we're not going to let anything like that happen," Kingsley said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We'll get him, especially if he's so weak right now."

"Kingsley, we need you to check Grimmauld Place for any leaks in protections or signs that he could get in. I thought he was Slughorn so I invited him in for a tour of the place and that's how he took me by surprise. That's how me and Malfoy ended up here at Hogwarts. Kreacher got my message and saved us in the nick of time. I didn't say the password aloud. I said it in my head so I don't think he'd be able to get back in."

Kingsley nodded. "We'll check it out and make sure it's safe."

Malfoy remained silent the entire time throughout the exchange.

"Let's get you both home so you can get some rest. We will figure everything out."

Harry and Malfoy were escorted back to Grimmauld Place by the Minister and Aurors. It took them twenty minutes to go through the entire house and make sure the protections were all in place.

"Everything looks fine, Harry. It's good you said the password in your head. Then I'd be concerned. This is still the safest place for you both."

Harry nodded. "Thanks."

Kingsley nodded back. "Get some sleep you two."

Once they were gone, Harry turned to Malfoy who had disappeared upstairs. Harry went up to his room and as Malfoy opened his bedroom door, Harry stopped him.

"Malfoy, wait."

"I said I don't want to talk!" Malfoy exclaimed, walking into his room.

"I know," Harry said quickly, following him inside. "Look, for what it's worth, I'm glad that I took that potion."

Malfoy wheeled around.

"It saved both of our lives. If I hadn't, Voldemort would've possessed me and you'd be dead. So…I'm grateful that we're both okay."

Malfoy wheeled back around, throwing his robe on the floor. "Yeah, great."

"Just so you know, I wasn't pretending," Harry said.

Slowly, Malfoy glanced over at him. He didn't say anything. Harry nodded to him and began to head out.

"Why did you do it?"

Harry stopped and turned. Malfoy was staring at him angrily. He turned fully around and crossed his arms. Harry stepped forward.

"I did it because I felt that you were hiding something from me. I kept thinking that you were just pretending to be my friend, but I didn't want to confront you unless I knew for sure you were up to something. So…I did some investigating. And I know it wasn't right spying on you or going behind your back."

"What exactly did you find out with the potion or your investigating?" Malfoy asked coolly.

Harry swallowed. He inhaled deeply. "That you have a very powerful Dark Arts book in your possession."

Malfoy's eyes widened. His expression turned to one of anger. "You went through my trunk?!"

"I'm sorry! I just – You weren't telling me about anything so I figured it wouldn't hurt."

"It wouldn't hurt?! That's my private stuff!"

"Well why the hell do you have that book?! And why did you steal it from the Malfoy Manor?"

Malfoy began to tremble with rage. "You want to know so badly, Potter?! Fine! I'll tell you! Since you're probably going to go to the Minister with your accusations!"

Malfoy went over to his trunk, unlocked it and took the book out. He flipped to a certain page and stomped over to him.

"This is what I was going to use!"

Harry looked at the page. _**The Unbinding Ritual. **_It had a list of very complicated ingredients. The potion itself was one of the most grueling he had ever seen. The ritual itself wasn't too bad after that.

"I don't understand," Harry said. "What is this?"

"It's the only known ritual that stands a chance against breaking an Unbreakable Vow!"

Harry blinked in surprise. "Why do you need that?"

"Because, Potter! My family has been controlling me my whole life! They forced me as well as themselves into an Unbreakable Vow that I don't want to be forced into doing. That's all you need to know!"

"So…you just wanted a ritual to break away from your parents?"

"Yes, Potter," Malfoy snapped.

"Malfoy, I'm sorry, I didn't – I mean, I just thought from looking at this book that you would use it to free your father and others from Azkaban."

"Well, you were wrong," he said coldly. "Now you can leave."

He yanked the book out of his hands and threw it back in his trunk. Harry nodded and then stopped.

"So, wait, is that why you needed to know about the Onyx Dragon?"

Malfoy scowled. "I don't even think I want to know how you know all that! And yes, Potter! I need very rare ingredients, very powerful ingredients to do it. And yes, it's an illegal ritual! But it's not hurting anyone!"

Harry glanced down momentarily. "I won't tell the Minister then."

Malfoy had both fists clenched. He turned around to glance at him. He was still red from yelling.

"I'm sorry I jumped to conclusions. I was wrong. I know that we have to stay here together for safety reasons, but I'd really like to continue being partners with you. If you'll forgive me, that is. And I think I know how I can make it up to you."

Malfoy shook his head. Then he snorted. "And how's that?"

"I'll help you."

Malfoy turned his head in surprise. His eyebrows furrowed. Then his expression morphed into surprise as it dawned on him.

"You'll help me with the ritual?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. If this is only to help you and it's not hurting anyone, then I want to help. I wasn't pretending to be your friend or…or anything. I was afraid that you were plotting something, and I'm sorry for that. I'll help you find that dragon, and that strange plant creature. I mean, you and I found that Blue Snargaluff, which hadn't been seen in decades. I think together we might actually be able to find these creatures."

Malfoy stared at him for a minute and then looked away momentarily.

"Just think about it," Harry said quietly.

The blond remained silent and he stared away. Harry went to the door and started walking through it. When he turned around to grab the doorknob to close the door, he hesitated.

"I'm glad you're all right."

Malfoy inclined his head to gaze at him. Harry stared at him for a second before he closed the door. Harry went to his room, closed the door and sighed heavily. It had all blown up in his face as he had feared it would. Now he would have to talk to Ron and Hermione. He wasn't sure how that would go either.

Harry lay in bed for a while. His head was spinning. He was concerned that Malfoy wouldn't want to be partners anymore. More than that, he was worried that if Malfoy felt betrayed by him he would go running back to his parents. After all, he didn't have anyone else. Harry didn't want that to happen. Neville was smart; he knew that Harry should've confronted Malfoy about everything.

He was also worried his friends would despise him when they learned he was helping Malfoy by letting him live with him. Most of all, he couldn't stop picturing Voldemort's eyes turning red. Harry had thwarted him again. Not only that, but he had tricked Voldemort. If he ruined Voldemort's chances of ever being able to get a permanent body, Voldemort would make sure he suffered. That meant he would come after the ones he loved. He needed to protect them. He decided in the morning he would go over to Ron's instead of waiting for a reply.

Harry got up, since he was unable to sleep, and went downstairs into the kitchen. He got a butterbeer and went into the living room. It was dark. The fireplaces were working again so he turned it on with his wand. When he turned he saw Malfoy lying on the couch and he jumped a little.

The blond stared at him. He had already gone through one butterbeer and he was on his second.

"You couldn't sleep either?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Not after the Dark Lord made another appearance."

"Yeah," Harry said glumly. He plopped down on the other couch.

They both lay in silence for a bit.

"Do you think he'll attack again?" Malfoy asked quietly.

Harry exhaled deeply. "Yeah, I do. Especially if he feels I've ruined everything."

Malfoy turned his head to gaze at him. "So he'll come after you?"

"That or the people I care about," Harry said. "I'm going to warn Ron and Hermione tomorrow. Ron I think will be going back to Australia anyway soon and Hermione will be going back to her Mediwitch school so they should be safe. Ginny is at Hogwarts so that's another safe place. The Ministry is on high alert, but it makes me nervous that they couldn't find any trace of him out there. I mean, he was so weak and yet he still managed to have enough power to escape the entire Ministry."

Malfoy just stared at him silently.

Harry turned his head. "He may come after you too."

The blond locked gazes with him.

"Voldemort suspects we're friends or at least that you've broken away from your family. I'm sure he knows we're partners at work. Slughorn figured that out." Harry hesitated. "Look, I understand if you don't want to be partners anymore. Not just because of what I did, but being around me right now might be dangerous."

Malfoy stared up at the ceiling for a minute. He snorted. "Being around you is always dangerous, Potter."

He turned his head toward him and Harry stared back. "So…you don't mind still being partners?"

Sighing, Malfoy turned his head to stare back up at the ceiling. "It wouldn't matter if I quit my job and got a new one. If I'm on his radar then I'm on his radar. Besides, we can't just stop living our lives. If we do and stay in one place too long, it will make it easier for him to find us. If we're out on our assignments in different parts of the world, we'll be safer."

Harry's expression lightened. "Yeah, that's true."

They fell into another silence. Harry was grateful that Malfoy was even speaking to him after everything.

Slowly, he turned his head to stare at the blond who was taking another sip of his drink.

"I'm sorry," Harry said, as Malfoy turned to gaze at him. "For what I did, I mean. I think I have trust issues."

Malfoy snorted. "You do. Along with many other issues."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, well, you're not perfect either."

Malfoy glanced at him. "I'm better off than you."

Harry snorted in amusement. "Well, maybe so. Or we both might be as insane as the other." Harry hesitated. "You know, I was going to talk to you about it."

He locked eyes with Malfoy again.

"The day that Slughorn came over was the day I was going to confront you about my suspicions. I knew that I was speculating and that the only way I'd find out anything more was to ask you directly. Then Slughorn came and…well, everything went to hell."

Malfoy hesitated for a minute. Then he licked his lips nervously and turned to him. "So…Potter, you weren't pretending to kiss me to get information?"

"No," Harry said immediately. "I would never do that. I can barely do well in a normal relationship, like with Ginny. I certainly wouldn't be able to," Harry gestured, "use someone like that. I'm sorry if I made you feel that way."

They gazed at one another and Malfoy shrugged. "So, do you really think we can find those creatures?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm not positive, but I think we have a really good chance. We're pretty warmed up since all of our assignments we've had to do. It may take time but I think we could."

"Yeah, but I did all the research I could on them," Malfoy said. "I couldn't find much at all about where to look or what signs to look for even in the areas that they supposedly were spotted."

Harry pursed his lips in thought. "Hey, wait a minute."

Malfoy turned his head. "What?"

"I was talking to Neville and he's going to be shadowing this brilliant Herbologist expert, Davin Rigelsby."

"Seriously?!" Malfoy exclaimed.

Harry raised his eyebrows. "You know who he is?"

"Of course, Potter! Everyone knows who the bloody hell he is! He's world-wide famous."

Harry shrugged. "Oh, well, Neville's going to meet with him next month and he supposedly picks up all of his shadowers personally. So I was thinking maybe we could talk to him about this plant."

"We have to wait until next month?" Malfoy asked.

"Well, just for the plant. We can start with the dragon first, if you want. You know, one of the places it was spotted was in Tasmania, Australia and Ron is dragon training in Australia. Maybe he would know someone we could talk to there."

"Yeah, Potter, but if that dragon expert we saw didn't know anything, what makes you think anyone else will be helpful?"

"Well, I don't, but it's worth a shot. Besides, even though Irena's an amazing dragon expert and has studied dragons worldwide in their natural habitat from a distance, she's not a dragon trainer. She knows how to ride them and keep them calm based on her own experiences, but Ron's been telling me about dragon training. They have to literally study dragons out in the wild and go live out there observing them for long periods of time. Irena was more of an academic expert and not necessarily a field expert."

"So you think that maybe someone out there maybe have seen something?" Malfoy asked, sitting up.

Harry nodded. "It's worth a shot. We could check out Tasmania first and see if we find out any leads."

Malfoy nodded. "Okay."

"So...the Astrindgo potion will wear off by my next eye potion dose. It did protect our lives though, but if you want me to stop taking it -"

Malfoy sat up completely and shook his head. "No. Not until we know Voldemort is gone. You already invaded my privacy anyway."

"Yeah, er, sorry."

"So does that mean neither of us can die from the killing curse?" Malfoy asked.

"Well you can't if he hits you directly," Harry said.

Malfoy's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Voldemort shot the killing curse at you. You were the target of the potion so your life couldn't be compromised. If Voldemort had shot the killing curse at me, it would've probably killed us both."

Malfoy breathed out heavily. "I can't believe I'm suggesting this, but what if we both take that potion."

Harry sat up quickly. "That might actually work!"

He jumped up and ran up the stairs. Malfoy followed right behind him.

"Where are you going?"

"To the hidden library."

"The what?" Malfoy asked incredulously.

They walked into the study and Harry pulled the book out and turned it. The hidden entryway was revealed and Malfoy stared at it in astonishment.

"Wow," he said, as he entered the library. "This might be helpful in finding information on those creatures too."

"Oh, yeah," Harry said. "We could try that. I think it's mostly about dark arts stuff, nothing like the book you have, but just useful information about potions and things. I found this on the Astrindgo potion."

He took it down and flipped to the right page. He read through it carefully while Malfoy stood peering over his shoulder.

"Okay. This potion is very sensitive. If we don't do it right, we could end up like some of these people."

Malfoy made a face. "Great."

"These two took the potion at different times and used too much personal DNA," Harry said, gesturing. "The other two used way too much Veritaserum and too much DNA. So if we take the potion again at the same exact time, after I let the first one wear off, of course, then maybe it will work. I brewed it correctly the first time so I know what to do. And I only used one strand of your hair."

"You _what_?!" Malfoy snapped. "How the bloody hell did you manage that?"

Harry gave him an uneasy look. "Er, you remember when my house elf seemed to attack you?"

Malfoy's mouth opened. "He was taking hairs?!"

"Yes. And I still have a couple of those hairs in my room. Now you just need mine."

Malfoy closed his mouth abruptly and stared at Harry's head. "I'll try to make it painful."

"It takes an hour to brew properly, then twenty minutes of cooling time."

"That's it?"

"Yeah, the actual brewing isn't the problem. It's being careful how much of the ingredients to put in and how to put them in right. Of course also in the right order. The hair goes in last. We should do that tomorrow because we don't know when Voldemort will try to strike. I still have all the ingredients we need."

"Fine," Malfoy said. "It's our best bet to survive."

"Yes. So our lives will be bound mind, body, soul. That means that in order to kill us, Voldemort would have to kill us together at exactly the same time. So being together might still be dangerous, but thankfully he wants me. So if he does attack let him take me and you run."

Malfoy stared at him. "Potter…that's stupid. He could still torture you."

"Yes, but he wouldn't be able to kill me. And you could get help. Right now he thinks that you're the only target of the potion, which means he would still think he could kill me and just end up killing both of us. He probably also thinks that eventually the potion will wear off, which is I'm sure what he's counting on. So he may bide his time for a month before he attacks. He knows that I've taken the eye potion too. Once the eye potion wears off and I have to take another dose of it, the Astrindgo potion will automatically wear off at the same time. Even if he suspects I may take another dose of the potion, he wouldn't expect you to take it as well. Therefore, he may try to find a way to reverse the potion, would be my guess."

"Is there a way?"

"I don't know. But if there is, Voldemort will surely find it. The good news is that if we both take the potion he would have to give us both the antidote. So as long as you stay away when or if he attacks again, we'll both be safe. Besides, he's really not that interested in you. He doesn't consider you a threat and that will work to our advantage."

Malfoy nodded.

"Oh, er, also just so you know this potion will allow us both to see each other's dreams and memories. I learned to control it so that way if I didn't want to see anything, I wouldn't."

Malfoy's eyes were wide. "You…what the hell did you see, Potter?!"

Harry flushed. "Er, just some memories. Kind of confusing. One of you right after the Battle of Hogwarts arguing with your parents. The other one of you getting into a huge fight with your mum over helping your dad out. Then the last one I saw was when you stole the book from the Malfoy Manor avoiding the Aurors."

Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "Well, payback will be nice. We'll have to see what you've been hiding. And I wasn't just avoiding the Aurors. I almost ran into my mother on the way out."

Harry blinked in surprise. He remembered seeing a figure walk down a hallway when Malfoy was trying to get out with the book. That hadn't been an Auror after all; it had been his mother. So he misinterpreted what he saw.

"Oh, er, sorry. But basically dreams are easier to access when the person's drunk. If we're sober, the memories are easier to access if you're concentrating on accessing them."

"Is that why you couldn't sleep well? Because you were too busy spying inside my head!?"

"Er, yeah," Harry said, wincing. "But I also wasn't trying to later on. Only the first time I was trying to see what you wanted out the Archives room, but then after that I didn't know how to control them. I can teach you so that if you do want to stop looking in my head, you can. Trust me, it can be exhausting."

Malfoy's tense shoulders seemed to loosen. "Yeah, I'm sure it's no picnic inside that head of yours."

Harry cracked a smile. "No, it's not. Anyway, I guess we should try to get some sleep."

"Yeah, right," he snorted.

The both of them headed back outside the room. They both had to go in separate directions to get to their respective rooms.

"Well, goodnight," Harry said.

Malfoy turned and then nodded. He went upstairs and Harry went into his room. He collapsed on his bed and then smiled. Everything seemed all right between them. He would obviously have to make it up to Malfoy, but at least the blond seemed to have gotten over the worst of it. He was so happy things were fine between them that he fell right to sleep.

In the morning, Harry got up early to brew both potions. He took out pieces of his own hair (to save Malfoy the fun of pulling them out himself) and put his hair on the table next to the last piece of Malfoy's hair. He brewed them in separate cauldrons to make sure that he didn't make any mistakes. Then he let both cauldrons cool for twenty minutes. He went to his bureau to get another vial of the eye potion as well. He had taken the eye potion almost a month ago, which meant that it would wear off any day now. He had to be prepared.

Once the potions were cool, Harry added Malfoy's hair to one and his own hair to the other. It disintegrated into the potions. Then he carefully poured them into two vials. He put the one with Malfoy's hair in his pocket and then went up to Malfoy's room. He knocked on the door.

"Just a minute."

Harry waited. He heard the sound of ruffling clothes. Malfoy was probably getting dressed. The door opened and Harry stepped inside.

"Here," he said, handing him the vial. "This one has my hair in it."

Malfoy took it in surprise. "How early did you get up to do this?"

Harry shrugged. "I couldn't sleep much anyway. My eye potion will wear off any day now. When it does, I will take that first then we both have to take these at exactly the same time. That's why we need to carry them with us."

Malfoy nodded. He put the potion vial in his pocket. "Are you going out?"

"Just to meet with Ron. I have to tell him about Voldemort. He and Hermione have to know. But, er, I think I'll leave out the part about us living together, for now."

The blond snorted and crossed his arms. "How surprising. Although it's annoying enough to have one person trying to kill us. I'd hate to have two. Just don't tell him I almost died. I don't want to make his day." At Harry's raised eyebrow, he added: "He probably could care less if Voldemort killed me."

"Honestly, I doubt that. Especially when he discovers Voldemort nearly killed you. He'll be sympathetic to you."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Great. That's what I need. A sympathetic Weasley."

Harry smiled. "Just stay here until I get back. I shouldn't be very long, but I think before we take the potions it would be a good idea for at least one of us to stay safe. I'm taking extra precautions when I leave. I'm using my invisibility cloak and I'm going to Apparate to Ron's."

"Has the Minister said anything yet?" Malfoy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Er, no, but I'm sure he'll say something eventually," Harry said, wincing. "I'm not exactly sure how he's going to react. I know what I'm doing is illegal but hopefully he'll let it go since it's an emergency."

"I'm sure he would even if it weren't."

Harry gave him a look. "I don't know. Kingsley is pretty fair. Anyway, I'll be back in like an hour or so."

"All right," Malfoy said.

Harry turned around as Malfoy shut the door. He then ran down the stairs and cautiously opened the front door with his invisibility cloak on. Once outside, he looked around. When he didn't sense or see anything, he quickly Apparated with a sharp pop. He ended up in front of the Weasley house and just as he Apparated there, Mrs. Weasley was coming out of house.

"Okay, now you boys –"

Mrs. Weasley crashed right into him. Being since she couldn't see what she crashed into she let out a loud squeal and whipped out her wand. Ron, Charlie, Percy and George all came dashing out.

"It's just me!" Harry shouted.

"Harry!?" Ron exclaimed.

Harry took off the cloak.

"Good heavens, Harry, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Mrs. Weasley shouted.

"Sorry. I had to take precautions."

"Precautions?" Charlie asked, putting away his wand. "Harry, what's going on?"

"Dad's been gone at the Ministry overnight. He hasn't said a word to us about anything. Then Ginny owled us to say she saw you and Malfoy running in Hogwarts like you had just been set on fire," Ron said. He was slightly pale.

"Okay. I'll explain everything. Let's just go inside."

They went inside and Harry sealed the door.

"Harry," Mrs. Weasley said, putting a hand to her mouth. "Is it really that bad?"

"Oh, great," Ron groaned.

"You should probably all sit down."

Nobody moved. They all were staring at him in silence. He could see they were all tense.

"Okay. The short way to say it is…Voldemort's back."

"Oh Merlin!" Ron exclaimed.

Percy gapped and quickly looked at his brothers before looking down. Mrs. Weasley gasped loudly and fell back into a nearby chair. George paled and then shook his head. Charlie just stared grimly.

"How bad is it?" Charlie asked.

"Well, he's weak. He took over Professor Slughorn's body."

"He what?" Ron exclaimed. "So he's possessed?"

"Not exactly anymore," Harry said, swallowing. "His soul was sucked out by a Dementor and Voldemort performed a ritual to completely take over his body. So it's all Voldemort in there."

Ron cupped a hand over his mouth to keep from screaming. He gazed over at his family.

"We should warn Bill so that he can take precautions for his family," Charlie said, leaving to go write an owl.

"Voldemort is incredibly weak and he can't sustain that body for very long. That's why he's after me. He means to combine his soul with mine and take over my body."  
>"Oh, Harry!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed as tears welled up in her eyes.<p>

"We won't let him do that mate," George said darkly. "He's taken enough of our families and friends."

Harry nodded. "I know. I've taken precautions too, which is what I need to explain to you all. And you're not going to like it," he said, glancing at Ron.

Ron stared at him for a second. "Does this have to do with Malfoy?"

Harry nodded. He explained to them everything that happened when Slughorn came inside. Well, everything except for Malfoy being there. Then what happened when they were taken to the cavern.

"Wait! So Malfoy's not helping him?!" Ron exclaimed.

"No. Malfoy and I are partners so that's why he was also targeted when the Inferi attack happened. Now Voldemort feels that Malfoy isn't loyal to his family or Slytherin heritage. That's why he tried to kill Malfoy."

"Oh dear," Mrs. Weasley said, clutching her chest. "Is he all right?"

Ron gave her an appalled look. "Who cares?!"

Harry glared at Ron. Harry hesitated. It wasn't safe to tell them about the potion and the plan for both of them to take it. Only they could know that. Otherwise, Voldemort might find a way to uncover that and their advantage would be gone.

"He's fine. We escaped. Voldemort doesn't know the password to Grimmauld Place so he can't get in. He might be biding his time until he tries to get me again. I assume he'll want to correct whatever went wrong the first time he tried the ritual. Hopefully he's not strong enough to be able to do all that, but it is Voldemort after all. I'm not taking any chances. You should warn Hermione too."

Ron nodded slowly. "Blimey this can't be happening again."

"It's okay, Ron. We have the advantage this time. Voldemort has none of his supporters. The Minister is going to do everything he can to ensure that the Death Eaters in Azkaban don't get out to help him. He's too weak to do much on his own. We'll get him. He's on the last thread of life. The only thing keeping him alive is one piece of his soul – that one Horcrux he placed inside Slughorn when he fought him at the Battle of Hogwarts."

"So that's how he did it," Charlie said, coming back over. "That's disgusting."

"Yeah. I'm surprised he could even split his soul anymore," Harry said. "He must have been desperate enough. I think he was afraid he was going to lose the Battle of Hogwarts so he wanted an inside servant to help him come back if that happened. He didn't intend to be disintegrated by the Elder Wand though. Still, he did manage to come back again, it just took a while. He said that body wouldn't last long but that it would last longer than just anybody. So I hope if I stay away long enough he will just die."

"I bloody hope so too!" George exclaimed.

Percy nodded in agreement.

"Maybe it's a good idea for you to go back with Charlie," Mrs. Weasley said. "The farther you all are away from here, the easier I can sleep. And I'll see if I can stay with your father in the Ministry building."

"Thanks mum," Ron said, nodding. "That's a good idea."

"Ginny's safe at Hogwarts," George said.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, she'll be fine. I don't think he has enough time to do anything elaborate so he may just come after me again. I'm not sure. I don't know how long he has. But actually, Ron, I was wondering if me and Malfoy could tag along with you and Charlie to Australia. It would be safe for us to keep moving around and do our assignments still, but I actually would really like to talk to some dragon trainers. We have an assignment in Australia so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity."

"Are you bloody kidding me?! You want me to entertain and protect him?" Ron exclaimed.

"Ronald Weasley! If Draco is innocent then there's no reason to act like a Slytherin yourself."

Ron gapped at her. Then he turned to Harry. "You sure Malfoy is safe to be around?"

"Considering he was almost killed twice now, yeah, I'm sure," Harry said.

Ron glanced down briefly. "What do you think, Charlie?"

"It's fine," Charlie said, nodding. "I just got back yesterday to tell Ron that there's a position open for him so he can get started. We leave in three days."

"Yeah, I was going to owl you to let you know I would be leaving soon. I just found out," Ron said. "I let Hermione know so we'll have to wait until she's on break from school to see her. I'll owl her right now to let her know what's going on."

Harry nodded as Ron ran upstairs to owl her. Mrs. Weasley walked over to him and embraced him.

"How are you holding up dear?"

"I'm fine," Harry said, smiling. "Thanks. I just can't wait for it to be over for good."

"Yeah, seriously," George said, shaking his head. "Voldemort won't ever give you a break."

"This is his last attack," Harry said. "He's got basically nothing left. So if we get through this, we'll never have to worry about him again. There's no way he can split his soul anymore. He's just living off that one remaining piece."

"Merlin, he really did find a way to be immortal. Killing him is a bitch."

"George!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.

"Well it is!" George shot back.

"The good thing is that Minister Shakelbolt is the best Minister we've ever had," Charlie said. "I'm sure he's doing all he can too."

"They should just execute the Death Eaters," Percy said. "If they do that, there's no chance The Dark Lord will be able to free them or ask for their help."

"That's true, but we have laws," Mrs. Weasley said. "Some of the Death Eaters didn't do enough to warrant execution."

"That's a bunch of rubbish!" Percy exclaimed.

"I know it is," she said, sighing. "We'll see what the Minister comes up with. I'm sure he'll know what to do."

Harry nodded. Ron came back down looking pale and uneasy.

"I should get back to Grimmauld Place. I'll let Malfoy know we leave in three days. Should we meet you here?"

"No. Meet us at the King's Cross Station. I'll see if dad will loan us a Ministry car to take there. That might be the safest way to go. We can put it in invisibility mode," Charlie said.

Harry nodded. "Okay. What time should we meet you?"

"Meet us at 10. I'll see you then," Charlie said, shaking his hand.

"Thanks," Harry said.

Ron just gazed over at him and looked quickly at the ground. He clearly wasn't comfortable with the idea of Malfoy being around.

Harry nodded to him. "I'll see you in a few days."

Ron nodded silently.

"Be careful, Harry," Mrs. Weasley.

Harry nodded and waved to them. Then he slipped his invisibility cloak back on and Apparated back. He ducked inside Grimmauld Place. Malfoy was in the living room eating. He sat up when he saw Harry walk in.

"How did it go?"

"As good as it could have. We're meeting them at the King's Cross Station in three days at 10 a.m. They're going to see if they can borrow a Ministry wizard car to put in invisibility mode to get there."

"Great. Being stuck with Weasley in a small car is way better than being stuck with him on a train," Malfoy drawled.

"Yeah, well, there's nothing we can do about it. You two just need to get over your differences."

Malfoy snorted. "That's not possible."

"Just make sure not to forget your potion. I don't know when the vision potion will wear off, but it's any day now."

"I know," Malfoy said. "I'll be ready, Potter. I sent a letter to Dimitri letting him know we'd be away for a bit so it will give him time to come up with another assignment. I told him I would let him know when we were back."

Harry nodded. The blond then came up to him to pass by him and stopped just as he was brushing up against his arm. He turned so their faces were inches apart.

"You still curious about my tattoo, Potter?"

"You still not going to tell me what it is, Malfoy?"

The blond smirked. His arm brushed against Harry's as he went to go sit back to finish up his lunch. Harry's heart had begun to pound again. He hoped that Malfoy hadn't been able to hear it. He would soon have access to Harry's memories and dreams. He wasn't sure he wanted Malfoy in his head, but it was the only thing that would keep them safe. Harry went to go make something to eat then returned to the living room to eat with him. He wasn't sure what to expect on their journey.

Finding the rare Onyx Dragon and the strange plant-creature could likely take a long time, not to mention figuring out how to brew the potion and do the dark ritual Malfoy needed. He was curious as to what exactly the Vow was that his parents did, but he wasn't going to ask questions right now. Malfoy was still angry at him for what he did, not that he could blame him. He would have to ask the big questions later. There was a part of him that was excited to go on this journey with Malfoy. Even with the thought of Voldemort in the back of his mind, somehow being with Malfoy had a calming effect on him. Harry remembered his conversation with Neville about whether or not he liked Malfoy. Maybe on this journey, he would figure out whether or not he did in fact like Malfoy.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note:** The romance will finally be blooming! YAY! They just needed a little near-death experience to help move things along. _(*snickers*)_ I know this was a super-speedy update! I unfortunately won't be able to do this every time, but since I left you guys on such a cliffhanger I worked very diligently this weekend. I do still have to study. I've been giving myself a bit of a break but I have to start up again soon. But I will still update regularly and try to do so within a week of each chapter. That's my goal! So I will update asap!

**To Reviewers: **

**DeiStarr**: I know it was a horrible cliffhanger so I updated much sooner! =) I won't be able to do that all the time though. Some chapters just take longer to work on than others, but I still will update regularly and try to do it within a week. So, what do you think of the Professor Slughorn- Horcrux thing? Tehehe! I hope now people can understand the clues I left, like Luna's warning, Slughorn's unusual appearance (pale and sickly). I know, Harry has a lot of making up to do, which can be very fun to write, muahahaha! Here's now where the friendship and romance can come hand-in-hand, which again will be very fun to write. So romance will be blooming! WAHOO! Awww, I'm sorry I scared you into thinking that Harry would break things off with Draco. See, Harry just needed a little near-death experience to help him figure out that he likes being around Malfoy. Now, things can start rolling! I will update asap!

**Monsters-Need-Love-Too**: Lol! Yes, indeed! Hopefully this chapter helped calm your nerves somewhat. Well, at the end anyway. It's not completely over yet though. Muahahaha! I know, I'm evil. But see now the friendship and romance go hand-in-hand, which will be very fun to write. Harry just needed a little incentive to figure out his feelings. Now everything can finally start moving. =) I will update asap!

**HPmeghan7474**: Thanks! Yeahhh, it's good Harry didn't break things off. He just needed a near-death experience to reevaluate his feelings, tehehe! I know! His snooping finally came to a head, but hopefully the end made you feel better. =) He has a lot of making up to do though (*winks*). Now the romance can really begin, muahaha! Well, plus it's still not completely over so the dark cloud is still hovering over them, but it makes for great bonding. Well, I won't spoil what happens to Slughorn aka Voldemort. =) But I will update shortly! Unfortunately, it probably won't be as quick as this one, but since I left everyone on such a horrible cliffhanger I was very diligent this weekend. I will update asap!


	13. Escalating Desires

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 12: Escalating Desires**

The next few days passed by slowly. For the most part neither one of them felt safe leaving the safety of Grimmauld Place. Thankfully they had plenty of food to last them. Since Malfoy sent Dimitri a letter, they didn't have to worry about assignments for a little while. They both packed a bag to bring with them. Harry made sure he had the potions he needed, including some extra vision ones just in case.

They both ate breakfast first. Malfoy was picking at his plate when Harry walked in.

"Not hungry?" he asked.

The blond snorted. "Weasley always ruins my appetite."

Harry rolled his eyes. "We haven't even left yet. Are you going to be this way the whole time? You do realize that Ron is doing us a favor by letting us come with him to Australia. We get to stay in the Inn that's specially for the dragon trainers instead of paying for our own Inn. And it's not that far of a broom ride from Tasmania."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Malfoy drawled. "I think mostly I hate being cooped up."

"I know you do," Harry said, smiling in amusement. He knew that Malfoy hated not having things to do for long periods of time. Three days had definitely felt like a long time.

Sighing, the blond took a bite. "So has your eye potion worn off?"

"Not yet. It could anytime now though. You have your potion?"

Malfoy gave him a look. "Of course I do."

Harry nodded. "We need to take it secretly. They can't know about the potion. Oh, also, I brewed you another potion."

He took out the vial and handed it to Malfoy.

"It's warm," he said. "What is it?"

"It's a very special potion, created by Snape actually," he said, as Malfoy gazed up at him in surprise. "It took these three days to make it and it still needs a couple more days to cool, but then you need to take it. It will protect our memories so that not even Voldemort can read our minds about the Astrindgo potion or anything."

Malfoy's eyebrows rose. "Are you serious?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

"When did Snape teach you this?"

Harry winced. "Er, well, I sort of discovered his potions book from school and have been using it."

Smirking, Malfoy snorted. "Wow. You do have Slytherin in you."

"Shut-up," Harry muttered. "Just remember to take it in two days."

The two of them then left the house and headed to the King's Cross Station. When they arrived at the station, Harry started feeling nervous. It didn't take long to spot Ron and Charlie in the crowd. Malfoy was walking slightly behind him. As they approached, Harry was half-expecting Malfoy to say something condescending or obnoxious to Ron. Surprisingly, he didn't. He remained silent with his arms crossed. Harry noticed that Malfoy seemed to focus on Charlie and avoided looking at Ron.

"Harry," Charlie greet. He turned toward Malfoy. "Draco, nice to meet you. Officially."

Malfoy uncrossed his arms to shake Charlie's hand and just nodded. Ron seemed to be avoiding talking to Malfoy as well, although he kept staring at Malfoy as if not believing he was standing there. It was the strangest thing for them to be there with Malfoy. He was sure the blond felt the same.

"The car is hidden so follow me," Charlie said quietly.

They all glanced around before leaving. Malfoy remained silent as did Ron. It was even more awkward than an all-out verbal attack. They approached the car hidden in some tall trees on the outskirts of the train station. They all headed for it and Ron went toward the passenger door and stopped. He turned back at Harry.

"It's fine. I'll sit in back," Harry said.

Ron looked relieved. Malfoy gave a soft snort and muttered something under his breath. Thankfully, Ron didn't notice. Harry and Malfoy got in back. Harry sighed when he sat down. It was going to be a long car ride. And not just because it would be 7 hours.

"Okay. We brought some snacks and drinks for everyone. It's going to be a long haul so we're prepared. I suggest using spells for bathroom purposes."

Harry nodded and waved his wand at his own body. It would temporarily disable their need to use the bathroom. After some moments of deathly silence, Charlie broke the ice.

"So, how long have you two been partners?"

"Oh, er, I don't really know," Harry said, glancing at Malfoy.

He shrugged in response. "A couple months."

Ron whipped his head around to the back seat. "A couple _months_?!"

Both Malfoy and Harry stared at him. Very slowly, Malfoy turned his eyes on Harry as if pleading for an escape. Harry raised his eyebrows. Ron cleared his throat, realizing he was making a scene.

"What exactly do you do? I mean, why do you have to have partners?" he asked.

"Oh, well, we go out and try to find rare and unusual plants. We have to take samples and some of the plants can be…a bit hostile," Harry explained. He turned to Malfoy who just shrugged again. Harry glared.

"Hostile plants? Like the Devil's Snare?"

"Worse," Malfoy drawled. "The Venemous Tentacula tried to strangle and poison us at the same time."

"Yeah, that was fun," Harry muttered.

"Well, it was your fault," Malfoy said.

Harry turned to stare at him with an open mouth. "My fault?"

"You clearly weren't paying attention. If you had just ducked out of the way, I could've stunned it and then you and I wouldn't have a near-death experience, which is what I've been having ever since we became partners."

Harry glared. "First of all, if you hadn't been such a prick, we could've worked together a lot better on that first mission – "

"Okay," Charlie said, shaking his head. "You two aren't going to do that the whole way, are you?"

Ron seemed amused by it. Or maybe it was relief. He turned back around in his seat. Harry glared at Malfoy. The blond gave him an apologetic look but crossed his arms and stared out the window. Clearly, Malfoy was uncomfortable and grumpy.

Most of the car ride was spent in silence, although Ron did start talking about his dragon training. He was telling them stories about what had happened and how many "near-death" experiences he had. Harry couldn't tell if he was doing it to show off to Malfoy or to break the silence. Malfoy looked like he wanted to throw himself out of the car.

"So anyway, when I get there they will have an egg for me. I'll get to watch it hatch and if I'm the first person who touches the baby dragon it will trust me more than anyone else. Of course, I still have to train with it and teach it to trust me over time, but it's important to be the first one to interact with it when it's born."

"Wow, that sounds really neat," Harry said. "So do you get to choose what breed of dragon?"

Charlie laughed lightly. "Ron wishes, but that's not how it works. Dragons are very particular when mating so it's hard for them to crossbreed as well, though they did manage to crossbreed an Opaleye with a Catalonian Fireball."

Harry turned at the name. It was the same as Malfoy's password to his trunk. Perhaps Malfoy did have a fascination with dragons. Glancing to his right he saw Malfoy staring at him. The blond's eyes narrowed. No doubt he wondered how Harry got into his trunk.

"So whatever dragon gets pregnant next is the dragon you get."

Harry nodded. "That makes sense. Do you know what the egg is?"

"Nope," Ron said, smiling. "I'll find out when I get there. I'm really excited! I kind of hope it's a Red-Tailed Sniper or maybe even a Turkish Hawkeye. Both are rarer breeds and look wicked."

Malfoy just rolled his eyes. Half way there, Harry's vision began to fail. He kept blinking as his vision would grow fuzzy then clear up a bit. He noticed that Malfoy was staring at him.

"Is it your vision?" he whispered.

Harry nodded. "I'm going to wait until we get there, even if I go completely blind, just to make sure that it's out of my system."

Swallowing, Malfoy nodded. They would be vulnerable in the car until they both took the potions. The car was invisible and pretty high up so if Voldemort did manage to find them there, that would be impressive, especially in his condition.

"Oh, Harry, Draco," Charlie said, glancing back at them. "Our dad told us that Cyprian is fine. He was checked out at St. Mungo's and seems to have no damage, although he doesn't remember anything that happened."

"Well, he was unconscious the entire time," Harry said.

"Lucky him," Malfoy muttered.

Ron glanced backward at Malfoy. The blond was just staring out the window.

"That's good," Harry said. "I was really worried. What about Liaeda?"

"She's fine although she remembers everything. The Ministry had to question her about exactly what Slughorn did or said in case there's anything of importance."

"Are there any leads?" Harry asked.

Charlie shook his head. "Sorry. They did cloak Azkaban with powerful spells, as strong as the protections on Hogwarts, and put up more barriers. They're taking extra precautions."

They all fell into a grim silence. He ended up falling asleep for a time, as did Ron and Malfoy. By the time they arrived around dinnertime Harry was completely blind. He knew the potion had completely worn off so he reached into his pocket. He put the vials in different pockets so he would know which to pick. He drank the vision potion and in less than twenty seconds his vision returned.

Malfoy glanced at him and Harry nodded to show him that he had taken it. They both got out of the car to see a huge building in the middle of lush forestry. The grass was so green and thick as they walked up to the building. They knocked on the door and a large burly man appeared. He was black but had crystal blue eyes. He grinned.

"Charlie, Ron, nice to see you two again." He then glanced back at Harry and Malfoy. "Who are they?"

"Some friends. They're actually here for their job but I told them they were welcome to stay with us. We already have it set up so they can have rooms. I owled Selena to let her know in advance. Harry, Draco, this is Harley."

"So this is Harry Potter," he said, grinning. "Nice to meet you."

"Er, you too," Harry said, shaking his hand.

Harley turned to Malfoy. "Nice to meet you too, Draco, is it?"

Malfoy nodded and shook his hand.

"What an unusual name. It must come from the word _drake_ which means dragon."

"Really?" Harry asked, looking at Malfoy.

The blond shrugged. "Yeah."

"Come on inside," Harley said, gesturing.

They entered and were greeted by a long hallway with wooden floors. There were various moving photographs of previous trainers with their dragons, many of them having won the grand title in the dragon tournaments. They were led to the main room where there were large tables and chairs for everyone to sit around drinking and eating in front of a large fireplace. A woman with long wavy black hair stood up when they entered. She smiled as she came over.

"Harry, Draco, nice to meet you both. Charlie told me you were coming," Selena said.

She had bright hazel eyes. Although she was older than them (probably in her early twenties) she was very beautiful. Harry could see Ron's face flush. He inwardly smiled.

"Your rooms are upstairs all the way down the hallway at the end. Here, let me take those," she said, waving her wand toward her bags. "Please, why don't you all join us for some dinner."

She smiled at them all and gestured for them to follow her to the table. Harry glanced at Malfoy. They would have to take the potions later. They both followed Ron, Charlie and Harley to her table and sat down. There was food on the table that they helped themselves to.

"So Harry, why don't you tell us about saving the world," Harley grinned.

"Oh, er, it's not as amazing as it seems."

He laughed. Serena just smiled.

"Stop bothering him, Har. I'm sure Harry just wants to enjoy himself and forget about all that," Serena said.

Charlie patted Harry's back.

"What is it you two do?" Harley asked, gesturing between him and Malfoy.

Harry glanced at Malfoy who shrugged. "We find and take samples of rare and even dangerous plants so their properties can be studied."

Harry smiled. Malfoy had been silent the whole car ride. It was nice of him to finally be getting out of his shell. It was strange being since at Hogwarts Malfoy was never quiet and always seemed to like the attention on him.

"That sounds pretty neat, actually," Harley said. "So what's your assignment this time?"

Harry froze. They hadn't even thought to come up with a plan.

"Actually, it's a pretty crazy one," Malfoy said.

Ron glanced at him in curiosity. "What do you mean?"

All eyes were on him and Malfoy didn't seem to mind it.

"We've been asked to find out clues regarding the unspeakable and potentially mythical plant-beast."

Selena gasped. "Really?"

Harley whistled. "Are you kidding me? It was only mentioned that once and there's nothing concrete on it. What do they expect you to do?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Find what we can. Actually, we had to find the rare Blue Snargaluff recently that hadn't been seen in over a hundred years and we found one."

"That's incredible!" Selena exclaimed.

Ron looked impressed as well. Telling the truth actually seemed to work well in this case. It was a good thing they didn't know the real reason they were searching for it. Or that they were actually there for the Onyx Dragon first.

"Speaking of myths and legends," Harry said. "If you all know your dragon myths, does anyone believe in the Onyx Dragon?"

Harley snorted. "Please. I have never seen anything close to that description. People like to make things up when they have nothing better to do."

"I don't know, Har," Selena added. "You know that Gaia's grandfather supposedly spotted one decades back."

"That's true," Ron said to Harley, agreeing with Selena. Selena smiled at him and Ron blushed.

"It's hard to say," Charlie said. "I mean, people didn't think the Blue Snargaluff existed because there was no real record about it, just a few sightings, and Draco and Harry found one. I guess you never know."

Harley leaned his cheek on his fist. "Yeah, but you'd think some dragon expert or trainer would've come across one before. The only people who have spotted them were just random folk."

"Doesn't mean it's not true," Selena said. "Maybe these dragons purposefully avoid dragon trainers."

"So, who's Gaia?" Harry asked finally.

"She's one of the trainers," Ron said. "She's not here right now because she's taking care of the new dragon eggs right now, but you'll see her tomorrow."

Harry glanced at Malfoy briefly who caught his eye and nodded. They talked and ate for a while longer until they all decided to get to bed. Charlie led them to the end of the hallway where their rooms were. Harry's was the second to last and Malfoy's bedroom was last.

"Thanks," Harry said.

Charlie smiled. "No problem. You two get some sleep."

Charlie headed back with Ron, who glanced at them briefly before following him. Their rooms were in the middle of the hallway. As they walked away, Harry glanced at Malfoy.

"We need to take our potions," he whispered.

Ron glanced back over his shoulder briefly so Harry opened the door to his bedroom.

"Meet me in ten minutes," Malfoy whispered, opening his door. They both disappeared into their rooms.

Harry saw his bag in the corner of the room. It wasn't very big, just a twin bed, a bureau and a small fireplace. Harry waited a few minutes before opening his door. He peered out and saw that the hallway was empty. There were just the little floating lamps in the hallway emitting a soft, dim glow. Harry crept over to Malfoy's door and knocked lightly. The door opened and Malfoy was standing there with his pajama pants on and no shirt. He had the fireplace on. Harry slipped inside. Malfoy headed over to his coat where he had the vial. He took it out. They both stood in front of the fireplace.

"You ready?" Harry asked.

Malfoy inhaled. "Yeah, let's just get it over with."

They both watched the other as they uncorked it. They brought it up to their mouths.

"On the count of three, right after I say three, we both take it," Harry said. "One. Two. Three."

They both swung their heads back and downed their potions. It was slightly bitter this time since it didn't have a drink to put it in. Malfoy scrunched his nose briefly.

"That wasn't too bad," he said.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah. Do you feel any different?"

Malfoy shook his head. "No. You?"

"No. I didn't notice anything the first time either."

There was a flicker in Malfoy's eyes, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, I should get to bed," Harry said. He started for the door.

"Potter."

Harry turned. His hand was already on the doorknob and he had just begun to open it. Malfoy approached him slowly. He didn't stop until he was right in front of him, just inches away. Harry watched him, feeling his heart beat faster as he stared at him. The blond's eyes glistened every time the flames from the fire reflecting in his eyes. They stared in silence for several long seconds. Malfoy reached out. He put his hand over Harry's as he closed the door completely. Without letting go of his hand, or the doorknob, Malfoy leaned forward and kissed him. Their lips touched and a spark of static electricity erupted.

Harry gasped, a bit taken aback. Malfoy's eyes had opened and he was staring at him curiously.

"That was…unexpected," Harry said.

"The kiss or the spark?" Malfoy asked.

Harry inwardly smiled. It was funny that people always wanted that special spark when they kissed and he had experienced it – with Malfoy of all people.

"Both," he said.

Malfoy stared at him for a second before leaning down again. Harry's eyes instinctively closed. He felt the blond's smooth, soft lips cover his own and then break away with a small sound. It was different being sober. He was aware of Malfoy's subtle cologne. Their eyes locked for a second. Then Malfoy angled his head and kissed him again, this time more confidently and more passionately. Harry leaned back against the door. Malfoy took his hand off the doorknob and wrapped his arms around his neck. Harry felt the blond's lips rubbing passionately against his, opening and closing around his own. He didn't even realize he had wrapped his arms around Malfoy's neck until the blond pushed him up against the door. Their bodies were flush up against one another's. Harry could feel Malfoy's smooth, warm skin beneath his fingers. He could feel the blond's heartbeat with his own. It was easier since Malfoy didn't have his shirt on.

Once the kiss broke Harry opened his eyes. Malfoy's eyes opened as well. Their hearts were pounding. Harry swallowed, trying to calm his racing heart.

"I should probably get some sleep since we have to get up early," Harry said, unwinding his arms from around him.

Malfoy backed up a little to give him space to move. Harry turned the doorknob.

"Goodnight," he said.

"Night," Malfoy said. The blond didn't seem upset by Harry's departure. His eyes appeared tired as well.

Harry glanced at him briefly watching as Malfoy turned and headed to his bed. Harry then left and went to his own room. Kissing Malfoy hadn't been strange. In fact, it had been rather nice. Harry felt his face flush. Although the spark…he wondered if that had anything to do with the potion. Sighing, he climbed into bed and fell asleep.

By morning, he heard a knock at his door. Slowly, he got up. He took a deep breath, thinking Malfoy was there. When he opened it, Ron was staring at him.

Harry blinked in surprise. "Hey, Ron."

"Hey. Sorry to wake you. They're serving breakfast soon and I wanted you to have some of the first picks."

"Oh, okay, thanks. I'll be right there."

Ron nodded. He hesitated before leaving. "Er, so, is Malfoy really…normal when you guys are on assignments?"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, pretty much. He can be annoyingly opinionated but otherwise yeah."

"It's just…it's weird seeing him so quiet like that. I almost don't believe he's the same Malfoy that went to school with us."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, me either, but I guess people change. I'm sure the war changed everybody, even us, although we may not notice it."

Ron nodded. "Yeah. I'll let you get dressed."

Harry nodded. Once Ron was gone he got dressed. Instead of heading straight to the sitting area, he stopped at Malfoy's door. Remembering last night, he flushed again. He took a deep breath and knocked lightly on the door. He heard a grumble and then the door slowly opened. Malfoy's hair was in disarray and his eyes looked tired.

"Hey, er, they're serving breakfast."

"Great," Malfoy muttered.

"Are you okay? You like tired."

Malfoy left the door open as he headed back inside. Harry followed and closed the door.

"I didn't get much sleep."

Harry felt his throat constrict. "Oh. Was it because of the potion?"

Malfoy hesitated and then nodded. Harry bit his lip. He was certain he didn't want to know what Malfoy had seen. He knew he hadn't dreamt the night before so it was probably a memory. Malfoy took off his pajama pants and Harry flushed again. He turned to try to give him some privacy. He heard footsteps behind him and turned just as Malfoy was approaching him.

"I'm ready," he muttered.

Harry opened the door and they both walked out. Unfortunately, Charlie was standing right there. He had seen Harry come out of the room with Malfoy.

"Oh, er, hi Charlie," Harry said.

Charlie nodded to them both. "Going down to breakfast?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Malfoy's a little sluggish this morning."

The blond just grunted but didn't say anything.

Charlie smiled. "Well some food will help that."

Harry nodded. He walked quickly by Charlie hoping that he didn't notice Harry's cheeks, which had flushed in embarrassment. It wasn't like Charlie knew about anything that happened between them. Only Neville knew that.

Breakfast was uneventful, except for the look of surprise on Ron's face when Harry entered with Malfoy by his side. Harry hoped Charlie wouldn't tell Ron he saw Harry coming out of Malfoy's room. Thankfully, Ron had seen Harry in his room when he knocked that morning, so it wasn't like Ron would come to the assumption that he and Malfoy were together. He couldn't have Ron blowing up at him so soon after they made up.

After breakfast they all went to the field area where the dragons were trained. The hatchery was nearby in a smaller building. Ron introduced them to some of the trainers. Gaia was the one Harry was most interested in. It was then as they approached the main field that Harry saw a large dark blue dragon. Its eyes were golden. It was being trained by Gaia.

"It's really cool when you see them in action," Ron said, gesturing to the dragon. "They can do amazing things."

"So that's Gaia, right?" Harry asked.

Ron blinked. "Er, yeah. Why?"

"I just wanted to ask her about her grandfather and what she knows. I think it would be interesting to hear about his experience."

Ron raised an eyebrow. "You're wasting time. I highly doubt her grandfather really saw an Onyx Dragon."

"Ron!" Charlie exclaimed. "Your egg is hatching!"

"Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed.

They all rushed over to the hatchery. There were five people standing around including Harley and Selena. The egg was a gray color. There was only a crack in the very top of it. Charlie gestured for Ron to come closer. Everyone else stayed a short distance away. Harry watched in awe as the small nostril peeked out from the crack in the gray shell. Ron talked to it, urging it to break free. That way the dragon could also recognize his voice. Gaia also came in to watch. She must have seen everyone running.

While everyone was focused on watching the egg move and slowly crack, Harry walked up to her.

"Hi, Gaia? I'm Harry," he said quietly, shaking her hand.

"Hi Harry," she said. "I heard you and your friend were coming. This is quite amazing, isn't it?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I also heard your grandfather saw the mythical Onyx Dragon. That's quite amazing too."

Gaia smiled. "Well, he thought he saw it. He can't be a hundred percent sure, but he's convinced."

"Do you mind telling me about it. I'm just really curious," Harry said, glancing over at the egg. It still hadn't cracked much.

"Well, he just said he heard something, like something whipping through the air. This was at night so he couldn't see really well. He said he saw an enormous shape in the sky. As it was flying up toward the clouds, probably to duck out of sight, he said the moonlight caught its torso and it was pitch black in color. Although again it was night so I guess you never know."

"Wow. Was that around here?"

She nodded. "Well, in Tasmania. He was at the Mount Pelion West – one of the taller mountains there. This was years ago though."

"That's amazing," Harry said, smiling. "Thanks."

She nodded, smiling back. Harry glanced over at Malfoy who had been watching him talk to her. Harry gave him a thumbs up sign and Malfoy raised an eyebrow. A large piece of shell broke off, landing on the floor. Very slowly, the gray baby dragon came crawling it. It got stuck at first but managed to get out. It looked around at the various faces, making noises. Ron spoke to it, bending down low and the dragon stopped and turned, recognizing his voice.

Holding out some raw meat, Ron gestured for the dragon to come to him. The dragon's head rose and fell as it surveyed him. Slowly the dragon sniffed with its nose. It came closer. It sniffed the meat up close and then grabbed it and ate it. Ron reached out to gently pat its head when it was busy eating. The dragon glanced up at Ron briefly.

Everyone around was smiling. Ron glanced over at him and Harry smiled and nodded. Selena then had the dragon be taken to get some milk and have a bath to wash the sticky egg goo off of it. Since Ron had fed him first, the dragon had a starting bond with him.

"That was incredible, Ron," Harry said.

Ron beamed. "Thanks. Now I have to choose a name for him."

Harry smiled. "That will be nice. Sorry to have to go, but Malfoy and I need to get started on our assignment."

"Oh, yeah, of course. Where are you guys going?"

"We're going to fly around see if we can interview some people and get some idea of where to start."

Ron nodded. "Okay. I'll see you later then."

Harry waved. Malfoy was waiting for him and they both walked out. They unshrunk their brooms from their pocket and took off into the sky.

"You have to admit that was pretty wicked," Harry said.

Malfoy shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. So what did you talk to Gaia about?"

"Oh, just the same thing we read. Her grandfather spotted one in Tasmania at the Mount Pelion West, or so he thinks. This was years ago but maybe if there was one there, we can find a clue."

The Pelion Plains were beautiful as they flew over them. A little while later they could see the large mountain in the distance.

"There it is," Harry said. "We should probably check inside it somehow."

"I know how to get in. We'll create a magical doorway," Malfoy said.

Harry nodded. They swooped down to the side of the mountain. Malfoy used a spell to create a doorway that they could enter. They both flew inside and put away their brooms. There were lop-sided tunnels inside the mountain. They followed a couple of tunnels and ended up in a larger space. When they came out Harry realized that a dragon could definitely fit inside there. It was made of the rock on the outside, but the ceiling in the space was tall and jagged.

"So the mountain has hollow space inside. This must be how the dragons hide so well," Harry said.

"Yeah. Although I don't know how steady the walls are in here," Malfoy said, ducking so his head wouldn't hit a nearby rock.

Malfoy nearly crashed into him as he tripped.

"Watch it, Malfoy," Harry said, as the blond grabbed his arm.

"It's not my fault. There's debris everywhere," he said. "I don't see any sign that anything lived in here."

"Well the mountain is pretty big," Harry said, stopping. "We may have to check all the tunnels and space within."

Malfoy sighed. "Great."

Harry turned toward Malfoy. "There's a dead end here. We should make another door higher up."

They both headed back out and sealed off the magical doorway. They flew up higher and Malfoy made another one. This time they walked into a hollow space almost immediately. It was much larger than the previous one. Malfoy was walking ahead. He stopped and glanced upward.

"There are some niches up there," Malfoy said, pointing. "We could check them out."

He turned toward him and Harry nodded. He took a step forward and tripped over something.

Malfoy caught him swiftly. "Maybe you're the one who's clumsy, huh, Potter?"

"Very funny," Harry said, moving his arms to straighten back up.

Malfoy's hand suddenly cupped his neck. He pushed Harry's head forward and their lips locked. It was only for a few seconds before Malfoy broke away. Their soft kiss echoed in the dark cavern. Harry stared at him in surprise. He realized his heart was beating again. And he realized that in the privacy of the cavern, with just the two of them, he felt safe. In fact, the kiss felt warm and soft.

They just stared at each other for a few seconds. Malfoy leaned forward and this time Harry was ready. He leaned forward without thinking and their lips parted over one another's. Malfoy inclined his head, sliding their lips together again. Harry wrapped his arms around Malfoy's head. The blond tightened his grip around him and pushed their bodies together. Harry wasn't expecting the move and he stumbled backward a bit. They accidentally fell towards the wall where there was a small niche. Malfoy kept a firm grip on him. Harry's foot stepped backward and he heard a crunch beneath his feet. The noise caused them to break apart. Harry stared at Malfoy for a quick second, trying to calm his racing heart.

"What was that?"

Malfoy shined his wand beneath Harry's feet and they saw bits of black. Harry picked up a piece and brought it up to the light.

"It's a piece of shell," Harry said.

He glanced at Malfoy in surprise. The blond's lips parted. "Like from a black egg."

They both gazed at one another.

"This must mean that there is one in here. Or at least there was. I can't tell how old these egg shells are, but if we bring back a piece maybe one of the trainers will know. That way we can gage how long ago it was here."

"Maybe it's still here," Malfoy said.

"I don't know. With all the dragon trainers in the area I don't think it would want all those people so close. Gaia said her grandfather saw one at night. Maybe it's nocturnal. We should come back here at night and camp out to see if we see anything."

Malfoy nodded. "Although if it's nocturnal we might be able to catch it sleeping."

"That's true," Harry said. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to look around."

They searched throughout the whole mountain, which pretty much took up the rest of the afternoon. They didn't find any more egg shells or signs of a dragon. Malfoy sighed heavily as they got back on their brooms.

"Well, there are other mountains in the area. I'm sure it wouldn't choose a small mountain so we should check out the bigger mountains tomorrow."

"Yeah," Malfoy said.

Harry glanced at him. He was flying ahead slightly but he was looking out at the sun that was lowering in the sky. He had a grim expression.

"So, Malfoy," Harry said, hesitantly. "What is this Unbreakable Vow we're trying to break?"

Malfoy sighed irritably. "I don't want to talk about it."

Harry gazed at him again and then dropped it.

"Okay. Do you know why we need to find the Onyx Dragon and this plant-beast?"

"This ritual requires a lot of power. And the way the Unbreakable Vow is…well, it binds lives together. I guess it's similar to the potion we just took," Malfoy said, still staring out ahead. "The Onyx Dragon has rare fire. It breathes white flames instead of red. The damage that the white flames can do is supposedly at least twice as damaging as normal fire. If this dragon is so much more powerful, then its flames would be more effective in the ritual than just using a regular dragon's flame. This ritual states that one of the ingredients that's said to maybe be able to combat the ingredients in the Unbreakable Vow is that of fire from a dragon. The fire is supposed to be put in last. If it's powerful enough, the person should begin to feel it in their body."

"So this ritual, no one knows if it will work?"

"Supposedly someone tried and it worked but only temporarily, which means it wore off and didn't break it completely. So the ritual states that if the main components of the ritual can be strengthened, like getting rare fire from a rare dragon instead of a regular dragon, then perhaps it can be broken permanently."

"I see," Harry said quietly. "I wonder how you would know if it's broken permanently."

Malfoy shrugged. "The person usually glows when the ritual is complete. It's the same glow that happens when you make an Unbreakable Vow. I don't know if you ever truly know until you test it or until that moment of the Vow comes."

Malfoy fell silent after that. Harry was curious about the Unbreakable Vow, but he didn't want to violate Malfoy's privacy anymore. He would just wait until the blond was ready to tell him.

"Er, Malfoy, is there something you saw in my head that made it difficult for you to sleep?"

The blond tensed. "Yeah."

He was silent and Harry lowered his head. He thought about all the things he didn't want Malfoy to see, such as his relatives abusing him, or him sleeping with Ginny.

"I just saw a glimpse. It wasn't much. It was…I think your relatives."

Harry bit his lip. "Oh, yeah. That's okay."

Malfoy snorted. "Seeing inside someone's head is not all it's cracked up to be. How do you control it?"

"When you're going to sleep, just think about sleeping only. Don't think about things you're curious about regarding the other person, or any questions."

Malfoy nodded. "It wasn't much though. It was just that one. It wasn't like I was being bombarded or anything."

"Oh, that's good."

Most likely whatever Malfoy saw was enough to disturb him so he couldn't sleep. Harry knew that the memories were relatively random. He had to work hard to even get a glimpse of the Archives when he was thinking about them. So thankfully even if Malfoy was curious about Harry's past relationships, that didn't mean he would see those memories. Harry realized that it was best to just learn things from the other person. He had learned that lesson the hard way. Sometimes things were not as they seemed and he didn't want to misinterpret anything again.

They got back to the site and immediately they went to find Gaia. She was in the hatchery. Ron and Charlie were with the new baby dragon.

"Harry! How's the assignment going?" Ron asked.

"Oh, er, unsuccessful so far, but we did find something fascinating."

Charlie stood up. "What's that."

"Gaia," Harry said, approaching her. "We found this."

She stared at the shard of black egg shell. "Oh Merlin, did you…I mean, is this…?"

"We think so," Harry said. "Your grandfather may have actually seen the Onyx Dragon. Can you tell how old that shell is?"

Malfoy was standing by her as well, listening intently. Gaia examined the shell piece and took out her wand to do some tests. Charlie and Ron both came over to stare at it too. The baby dragon of course followed. Harry gazed down at it and its hazel eyes gazed right back up at him. Harry smiled.

"Did you name him?"

Ron glanced down at him and smiled. "Yeah. His name's Nagae [NA-GEE]. It's close to the word dragon in Indonesian. That's where he's from. I mean, I guess his parents I should say."

Harry smiled. "I like it."

"I think this piece is at least ten years old, but I can't be certain," she said. "Still, I can't believe you guys found this! I'll have to tell my grandfather! Oh, can I keep this?"

Harry nodded. "Sure." They had other pieces that they had gathered.

"Where did you guys find it?" Ron asked.

"Oh, we were checking the inside of a mountain for signs of whether or not the plant-beast would hide in there and found those instead."

"Wow. That's a lucky break. You're looking for one mythical creature and find remnants of another," Charlie said.

"Yeah," Harry said. "Pretty amazing."

"Sorry you didn't catch a break for your assignment though," Charlie said.

"Well, we didn't expect it to be that easy," Harry replied. "We'll continue our search for clues tomorrow."

"Good idea," Charlie said, patting his back. He then gave Malfoy a smile. "You two deserve a break and some dinner."

"And some sleep," Malfoy muttered.

Ron glanced at him quizzically. Harry was too afraid to see the look on Charlie's face so he didn't turn. He just followed Ron out toward the main building. Word had gotten around about their finding and people were asking them millions of questions. Harley was still skeptical, saying that it could've been a different color years ago and that it changed over time (since it was so old). Malfoy got caught up in a conversation with one of the trainers though Harry was hardly paying attention. He was eating in silence but he was deep in thought. Malfoy had kissed him again. Every time he did so it felt less awkward. He wasn't sure what to make of it. Could they become a real couple? Or was this an infatuation? He had never had feelings for a guy, let alone feelings this intense. His feelings were Ginny had built up slowly over the course of 6 years. His feelings for Malfoy had seemed to come much faster. They had only been living together for a couple months.

"Harry, are you there?" Ron said, waving a hand in front of his face.

"What? Oh, yeah, sorry, I'm just tired."

Ron nodded. "Can't blame you mate. You have a pretty tough job."

"Yeah, it's challenging but not always so life-threatening," he said.

Ron smiled. "Well that's good. Although I'd be worried about you if you of all people took a safe job."

Harry laughed. "Good point."

He felt a twinge of guilt for hiding what was going on with Malfoy. He usually confided in Ron. This time, however, he didn't feel it was safe to confide. At least not until the danger had passed and Harry was certain about how he felt.

"I'm going to go to bed. I'm exhausted," Harry said.

Ron nodded. "Okay. Night."

"Night," Harry said.

He saw Malfoy watching him head up the stairs. He smiled briefly at Malfoy before disappearing. He walked to his room. He barely remembered changing and lying down in bed.

The next morning Harry woke up to the sun shining in his room. He stretched and yawned. He realized he could sleep in if he wanted since he and Malfoy wouldn't be checking out the other mountains until dusk. He closed his eyes again and hugged his pillow tight. A knock came at the door.

Harry groaned. "Come in."

The door opened and he heard someone step inside. Then someone snorted.

"Being lazy today, Potter?"

Opening his eyes, Harry saw Malfoy standing there at his doorway. He was leaning against the frame with crossed arms and a smirk on his face.

"We don't have to go till later," Harry argued.

Raising an eyebrow, Malfoy uncrossed his arms. "Fine. Be lazy. But you'll miss breakfast."

Harry shrugged. "There's always lunch."

Malfoy shook his head in amusement.

"So what time do you want to go?"

"Probably 7 just to give us time to set up before it gets dark."

Harry nodded and yawned again. Malfoy just smirked again.

"You're really going to just lie there all day."

"Not all day," Harry said, grinning.

Malfoy just shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'm going downstairs to eat."

He glanced at Harry briefly before closing the door. Harry didn't remember how long it took for him to fall asleep again with the warm sun beaming down on him. However, when he woke up he heard something nearby. He opened his eyes to see Malfoy setting a tray of food on his bureau. When the blond began to turn, Harry shut his eyes so he wouldn't know he was awake. He heard Malfoy snort softly.

'_He's cute when he sleeps.' _

Harry grinned without opening his eyes. "Thanks."

He was greeted by silence. He cracked his eyes open and saw Malfoy staring at him with a shocked and slightly frightened expression.

"What? You shouldn't say things if you don't want to be embarrassed."

"Potter, I didn't say that."

Harry stared up at him in confusion.

"I thought that," Malfoy said, his mouth parting in shock. "Is that potion allowing us to read each other's thoughts?!"

Harry sat up. "I don't think so. Wait let me try."

_Can you hear me?_

Malfoy's eyes widened. "Yes! Potter, this can't be happening!"

"Hold on, hold on," Harry said, putting up a hand. "Don't panic. We didn't hear each other's thoughts yesterday."

"Well we're hearing them now!"

Harry bit his lip. "I guess it's a side effect of taking them at the same time."

"A side effect?! Potter, it's more than that!"

"Well, maybe we can learn to shut each other out, like we do with the memories."

'_Why the bloody hell do I listen to him?!'_

Harry's jaw tensed. Malfoy glared. He then wheeled around and headed for the door.

"Er, thanks for the food," Harry said quickly.

The blond hesitated, glanced at him, and then shut the door. Harry sighed. That was an unintended consequence. Perhaps it happened after they kissed when the strange spark occurred.

"Oh, great," Harry moaned, rolling back into bed.

It took him some time to get up but he finally did. He ate the food Malfoy brought for him. Then he got dressed and went downstairs. There weren't many people there. Most of them were out training still. He spotted Malfoy sitting in one of the plush chairs drinking a butterbeer. Harry began heading over to him. Then Harley came in.

"Hey Harry, there you are. Ron's been wondering where you were."

Malfoy turned, spotting Harry. There was a look on his face. Harry couldn't read it.

"Oh, er, is he in the hatchery?"

"Yep," Harley said. "Hey Draco, something wrong over there?"

"No, nothing," Malfoy lied.

He gazed at Harry again. Harley didn't seem to notice the exchange. He just grabbed a butterbeer and left. Harry sighed and went over to Malfoy.

"Hey, sorry about that."

"Whatever," he muttered. "I'm sure you know what I'm thinking now."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Actually, no, I can't."

Malfoy gazed up at him. "Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, I'm not trying to focus on it. Here wait," Harry said, sitting down. "Let's try an experiment. Try to talk to me first in your mind. Then think something about one of them," he said, pointing to a couple random guys sitting at a table.

'_Fine. How's this?'_

"Okay. I heard that," Harry said. "Now try them."

Malfoy glanced over at them momentarily. He then glanced back at Harry.

"Did you try?"

The blond raised his eyebrow. "Yeah."

Harry sighed with relief. "Oh good. Okay. It's not all thoughts we can hear. Just the ones we direct at each other."

Malfoy exhaled loudly.

"I'm going to go meet Ron. We have a few hours before we have to leave. We could watch the dragon trainers."

Malfoy shrugged. "Sure."

"Okay. I'll meet you at the field in a little bit."

Harry headed for the hatchery and saw Ron feeding Nagae.

"How's he doing?"

Ron turned his head around. He smiled when he saw him. "Really good."

He stood up and once he did so the dragon ran across the hatchery. Harry watched in amusement.

"He seems to have a lot of energy."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, he does. So, are you and Malfoy going out searching for clues again?"

"Yeah. Er, we're going to be out pretty late. We're wondering if this plant-beast is nocturnal or not so we're seeing if the dark makes any difference."

"Oh, okay." Ron hesitated. "You know, I'm sorry again for blowing up at you. I know your job is important and if the Minister thinks Malfoy is safe then…I'm sure it's fine. Just so you know Cyprian never came to the Quidditch night. It was just me and my family. I told him that it was cancelled and we would reschedule sometime."

Harry blinked. "Oh, thanks."

Ron nodded. "Just wanted you to know that."

Harry smiled. "Thanks. I'm going to go watch the trainers before we have to go, if you want to join me."

"In a bit. I have to do some training of my own with him," Ron said, gesturing to the dragon who was currently trying to chew his way up the side of another egg's barricade. "It becomes a full time job. I know it's a lot of work but seeing the bond the trainers have with their dragons now, it's worth it."

"I agree," Harry said, smiling. "I'm glad you found something you're really passionate about."

Ron nodded and then turned his attention back to his dragon. "Nagae! Get down from there!"

Harry went to the field where Malfoy was already standing. They stood and watched Selena and the others with their dragons. They taught them how to do spirals and flips in the air, and how to dive at them so that when they jumped they caught them just right. It was amazing to watch. After a while, they headed off back to the mountains to check the next tall mountain. They decided to check Mount Gould next. It was another high mountain surrounded by lush greenery so it was well protected and isolated.

They set themselves up at the bottom of the mountain and sat waiting for the sun to go down. Malfoy had brought snacks and butterbeer so they distracted themselves with that.

'_Maybe it's a good idea we use this link for now.'  
><em>Harry turned, surprised.

'_Just so that we're quiet and don't scare any dragons off.' _

Harry nodded. _Okay. _

Once the sun was down, they stared up at the sky. Harry marveled at all the stars. It was quite beautiful. Malfoy was looking up at the sky too. The moon was only half full but it still gave off some light. Suddenly, Harry heard something. The flapping of large wings, he was sure of it.

_Malfoy! I think I heard something!_

The blond sat up straight. They both listened closely. Something was flying. They heard it land on the mountain. Quickly, they flew up to the mountain and created a doorway to get inside. They quietly stepped forward through the narrow passage. Harry was in front of Malfoy. It was getting darker the further they were from the doorway so Harry used his wand to light the way. The second that the light shone through, a pair of beady eyes met them.

The dragon roared loudly. The orange flame came at them and Harry dove out of the way. Malfoy put up a shield charm to protect himself.

"Malfoy!" Harry shouted aloud. He hadn't been able to see Malfoy in the mass of flames.

The dragon's head whipped around. It was a large reddish-brown dragon. Definitely not the Onyx Dragon, but still a dragon nonetheless. One they had pissed off. Harry ran toward the entrance, trying to get to Malfoy to see if he was all right. He heard cursing and sighed with relief. Malfoy dove out of the way and into the larger space where Harry was. The dragon roared as it came around, whipping its tail. Harry was side-swiped by the end of it and knocked off his feet. He rolled on the ground and suddenly felt the ground beneath him crumble. He fell through a weak hole and yelled in surprise.

"Potter!" Malfoy shouted.

He had lost his wand when he rolled so he couldn't levitate himself. Malfoy's face appeared above him and he levitated him just before he crashed to the ground. The dragon roared and Harry saw Malfoy's terrified expression before he jumped in the hole. The claw that came down through the hole missed him by mere seconds. Malfoy levitated himself downward and dropped to the ground. They both scrambled down the strange passage way into a deeper passage. Malfoy tossed him his wand. He was about to use his wand for light when suddenly they found the passages were glowing. There were phosphorescent crystals within the cavern walls, glistening as they passed.

"Wow," Harry said breathlessly.

"Yeah," Malfoy agreed.

They could still hear the dragon roaring above them. They got to a larger area and they both stopped to catch their breath.

"Well, that wasn't the right dragon," Malfoy muttered.

"At least it was a dragon so we weren't entirely off," Harry retorted.

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Right. Well, we should probably wait a few minutes before trying to get out so we're not barbequed on the way out."

Harry laughed. "True. I really wish you had gotten that shirt."

Malfoy glared. Harry just sat down on the ground, staring at the crystals.

"I've never seen tunnels like this before especially in mountains."

"We must be underground. That's why," Malfoy said, sitting down next to him.

Harry sighed and rubbed his temples. He gazed over at Malfoy who caught his eye. They stared at each other for several minutes and then burst into laughter.

"Why am I always getting flamed at by dragons," Malfoy said.

"Because they like you," Harry joked. "Your name does mean dragon after all."

The blond glanced over at him. Harry stared back, smiling. Malfoy just shook his head. When he turned back to him, he had this look on his face. Before Harry could ask, Malfoy leaned forward and kissed him. It was a quick kiss. The blond pulled back and Harry found himself wrapped his arms around Malfoy's neck to pull him back in.

Being down in the beautiful glowing cavern, Harry felt his desire growing. They both stood back up. Harry tilted his head as Malfoy's lips continuously moved over his own. Malfoy pushed him up against the cave wall in between two large clusters of phosphorous crystals. Lifting his hand up Harry's shirt, Malfoy started trailing his fingers down Harry's back. The feeling tickled but also made him shiver. Harry tightened his grip around Malfoy. Their heads tilted again as their lips moved passionately. Malfoy's hand moved slowly down toward his pants. His fingers brushed up against the buttons. Harry's heart began to pound. Heat rushed to his groin.

Malfoy's fingers lingered on his buttons. Harry could feel his back rub up against the wall. Malfoy slipped his finger down into his pants so he could rub his hip through his boxers. Malfoy was careful not to go much lower. He was probably concerned about how far Harry wanted to take it. Harry wanted to take it slow, but as Malfoy was massaging his hip with one hand, trailing up his back with the other, and kissing him passionately, Harry could feel his arousal growing.

Harry started to trail his fingers down Malfoy's bare back as well. Malfoy made a soft sound in the back of his throat. Harry dipped his finger down Malfoy's pants just like he had done. Harry could feel something just above his underwear moving. He realized the tingling feeling must have been the tattoo he had gotten. Curiously, Harry slid his finger past Malfoy's underwear to touch his bare pelvic region just to the side of his groin. He rubbed the tattoo to feel how big it was, causing Malfoy to groan.

The blond pushed their bodies up against one another. He moved the hand that was on Harry's back up to his neck, pushing Harry's head to the side. As he did so, he slid his tongue in his mouth. Harry could feel the soft, smooth tongue run across his own and he instinctively slid his tongue across Malfoy's. Their kiss made a deep sound as they broke apart. Then they came back together with mouths open. Harry rubbed the tattoo, attempting to figure out what it was. He almost brushed up against Malfoy's crotch. Malfoy groaned loudly and started to pull Harry's jeans down. His boxers accidentally began to fall a bit. It only revealed the outline where it led to his crotch.

Just then the cave shook violently. The dragon roared loudly. Breaking apart, they both glanced up to where the cave ceiling was shaking.

"Er, we should probably get out of here now," Harry said breathlessly.

Malfoy was breathing heavily. He nodded. "Yeah."

They quickly ran through the tunnel till they came to a wall. Malfoy created a doorway and they took off. They flew back to the building and Harry was relieved when they made it there without incident. They walked back to their rooms in silence.

"Well, hopefully we'll have better luck next time. We may want to check out a few more mountains while we're here. The next clue was in Italy."

Malfoy nodded. "Yeah."

"Night," Harry said.

The blond smirked. "Sweet dreams, Potter."

Harry gave him a look then rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you too, Malfoy."

The blond snorted and then closed his door. Harry went into his room. He crashed on his bed moments later, staring up at the ceiling.

_I can't believe I really like him. _

Harry stopped momentarily. _Malfoy, can you hear me?_

There was no response. That meant that they could only read thoughts not only when directed at each other, but in close proximity. Harry breathed another sigh of relief. He remembered the blond sliding his tongue in his mouth and attempting to take off his pants. He flushed and turned over in his bed. There was still a part of him that wondered if Malfoy would ever reveal to him what the Unbreakable Vow was that he so desperately wanted to avoid. Harry tried not to think about the possibilities. If they couldn't break the Vow, would Malfoy have to leave and never return? Harry closed his eyes, not wanting to think about it.

TO BE CONTINUED…

**Author's Note:**Well, the romance is FINALLY heating up. Yes, I know, you're impatient. I promise you when the romance comes to its peak it will continue steadily and it will be worthwhile! Also, for those of you concerned about Voldie's appearance, fear not! He is not a huge part of this story. It is not about fighting Voldie as was the HP series. The danger is just to bring them closer together. I won't spoil what the result will be with Voldie, but just know that the main focus is the romance. Everything else is background noise and entertainment.

**To Reviewers: **

**Missy Padfoot: **Thanks for all your honest comments and feedback! Don't worry Voldemort will not be a big part. So hopefully you'll like what happens**. **In regards to Neville - yes, I can see where you're going with that. I suppose there could be some...jealousy. Even with Ron because Harry's been going to Neville for advice instead of Ron and Hermione. I'll have to think on it. To be honest, I know how the story will end, but some things in the middle are still changing as I'm writing so you never know. ^_^

**Rising Phoenix1835**: Don't worry! Voldemort is not a main part, promise. It's not about defeating Voldemort. Voldemort is just a key element to use so they have a danger to share together besides their work-related stuff that helps to bring them closer together. Also, the ritual Draco needs helps a lot too. That's actually more the main plot (of course with their job too). So don't worry, Voldie won't take away from the story, promise! There's no real subplots. The mystery and suspense with Voldie, Cyprian, Harry's friends, that's all just background noise that helps to morph their relationship. The story is a romance story so the main focus is Harry and Draco's budding romance and relationship.

**AlbinoHorse**: Thanks so much for your lengthy review! =) I'm so glad you really like this so far! And really glad you think Harry and Draco are in character. That's the main thing for me. If it's not believable it's not fun writing. Yep, there is some background stuff going on like Voldie and Cyprian and Harry's friends, but really the focus is on their budding romance. Tehehe! Anyway, let me know what you think now about the tattoo! (*innocent smile*). I promise to update soon!

**Monsters-Need-Love-Too**: Lol! Well, I hope you were at least a little satisfied now. I know, it seems to be taking forever, but once the romance gets started it will be steady. It's getting there! Just one step more! I will update asap!

**HPmeghan7474**: Lol! Don't worry Voldie isn't a huge character in this one. I won't spoil what happens with him, but just allow yourself to be distracted by Draco and Harry. Tehehe! Yes, they're finally making up! =) And you kind of get a taste of what the Astrindgo potion does when taken simultaneously. They don't understand the full ramifications yet. I will update asap!

**FairyDust353**: Yesssss, he is, but fear not, he's not a big part. The romance is the main genre so hopefully that makes you feel better. =) I will update soon!

**StubbornBlonde**: Thanks again! I'm soooooooo happy that you really like this! And I'm so glad it's not too repetitive or you get too distracted. The romance is the main genre so the other things going on is just to add to that, like Voldie and such. I'm not trying to overwhelm you, promise! Lol! I will update asap!

**DeiStarr**: Yay! So glad you liked Slughorn as the villain! =) Well, okay, technically it's Voldie, but still it was a tricky way Voldie decided to come back. He really doesn't want to die. But I promise you Voldie won't take away from the romance. In fact, it's making them stick together. Think about it, they never would've lived together if their lives hadn't been in jeopardy, hmm? Muhahaha! Oh yes, hopefully you were satisfied with the snogging, lol! There is definitely much more to come! I will update asap!


	14. Breaking Through

_**Luminescence**_

_**Author's Note:**_ Sorry for the slight delay on the chapter. Normally I try and post chapters within a week of one another, but I took a few days off for the 4th. _(*looks away innocently_*) So it took me longer than normal to post, which can happen at times, lol! **SPOILER**: Things start heating up in this chapter…(*smiles*) Enjoy!

XXXXXXXXXX

**Chapter 13: Breaking Through **

By the next morning, Harry felt somewhat refreshed. He showered and got dressed. He did so in a sort of trance as he thought about the previous night. He had realized he had feelings for Malfoy, or at least an attraction. He wasn't sure of the extent of the attraction yet, but he couldn't deny how good it felt. A part of him wondered how far Malfoy had wanted to take things the other night. Harry was still nervous. He didn't know how far he wanted the relationship to go, but that was just something he would figure out in time.

Harry left the room and was surprised to see Malfoy's door opening just as he was walking out. The blond glanced over at him.

"Hey," Harry said.

The blond cocked his head and then smiled. "Have any good dreams, Potter?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Wouldn't you know if that were the case?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Not really. You weren't drunk last night. Besides, there are still limits on what we can see of each other. Thankfully what you said worked. I haven't seen any more of your memories."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to see inside my head to get back at me."

"I've seen enough," Malfoy said. "So after breakfast are we going to check out some more mountains?"

"That is the plan. Why?" Harry asked.

Malfoy shrugged and then grinned. "No reason."

Harry gazed at him suspiciously. Just then Ron walked out of his room. He spotted Harry and Malfoy walking in his direction.

"Oh, er, hi," he said.

Harry nodded. "Hey, Ron."

They all started walking together. Malfoy stayed on Harry's other side, far away from Ron.

"So are you guys still searching for clues?"

"Yeah," Harry said. "Are you going to train Nagae today?"

Ron grinned. "Yep! I get to take him out in the field to see how he does today."

Harry smiled in response. "That's great!"

'_Yeah so we can all bear witness to Weasley's lack of experience. I hope he catches fire.'_

"Stop that," Harry said aloud.

He glanced at Malfoy who raised his eyebrows in response.

"Stop what?" Ron asked, staring at them.

Harry's eyes widened. He turned back to Ron. "Oh, er, nothing. I hope your training goes well."

Ron gazed at him, puzzled. "Thanks."

Malfoy smirked but remained silent. Breakfast went as well as could be expected. Malfoy was having too much fun with their bond and Harry had to be careful not to say anything aloud. Ron left to go take Nagae to the field. Harry promised to watch a little before they left. They stood in the back on top of the hill overlooking the field. The other trainers, including Harley and Selena, were watching from just beyond the magically charmed line of the field that prevented the dragons from running off.

"Why do we have to stay and watch?" Malfoy asked, sighing.

"Because he's my friend," Harry said, giving him a look. "Besides, we have all day to look for more clues."

"Do we have time for anything else?"

Harry turned to find the blond with a sly grin on his face. Harry's cheeks suddenly felt hot. Malfoy reached his hand around toward his back. They were both still facing the field with their bodies, but their heads were turned toward one another. Slowly, he traced his fingers down Harry's back and his fingers slipped up inside his shirt. The fingers massaged his skin as they came back down. Malfoy hesitated before he traced the lining of his jeans. His finger began to slip inside his pants. Harry's heart was pounding. The hairs on his neck stood up and Harry's head jerked toward the field. Malfoy's hand froze as they both saw Charlie walking up the hill towards them. Thankfully their backs were away from Charlie. Malfoy slipped his fingers from his skin and then patted his back as if that was his intent all along. Then his hand slipped away.

"What are you two doing up here?" Charlie asked. "Aren't you going to come closer to watch?"

"We're just staying for a bit. We have a lot of searching to do but I promised Ron I'd stay for a little bit to see him train," Harry said. His heart was still racing.

"Oh, okay," Charlie said. "Well good luck with your search today."

"Thanks," Harry said, nodding.

Charlie went back down the hill and Harry's shoulders loosened.

_That was too close. _

Harry turned and saw Malfoy staring ahead. The second that he had thought that he realized that Malfoy might have heard it. He was still uncertain about his feelings or if things with Malfoy were serious or just temporary. Until he was certain he didn't want his friends to complicate things.

They stayed for a bit watching Ron train his dragon. Nagae was a bundle of energy. He attempted to fly as he was jumping toward Ron in excitement and nearly whacked him in the face with his tail. Malfoy laughed out loud at that. Seeing the adult dragons was amazing. They could dive really fast and swoop around obstacles as well as picking up their trainers midair. Once Ron was done Harry and Malfoy took off toward the next mountain.

They were silent on the way there, just taking in the nice breeze as they flew toward their next destination. While exploring various places was enjoyable, the Unbreakable Vow made Harry nervous. What if they couldn't find the Onyx Dragon or the mythical plant-beast? Or even if they did, what if it still didn't work? Harry shook his head as they approached the mountain. Malfoy created a magical door and they entered. The inside was extremely deep. They had to levitate to get across all the gaps.

"Wow," Harry said, looking up at the tall pointed ceiling. He could make out the shape of the tip of the mountain.

Malfoy glanced up and then back around. "I'm not seeing anything."

"Yeah," Harry said, gazing around. "Do you think there's another underground cave? Maybe they preferred to be under the mountain instead of inside of it."

Shrugging, the blond levitated toward the rocky ground. Harry followed suit. It was difficult to walk on since it was so rocky and unstable so they had to remain levitating a few inches off the ground. While they were searching for some kind of opening, Harry glanced over at Malfoy. The blond was quieter than usual. He hoped he hadn't upset him. He attempted to think of something to say.

"I found something," Malfoy said.

Harry glanced over. Then he floated over to him. There was a small hole in the back of some large rocks. The dragons would easily be able to slink their bodies down and around all the debris.

"I guess we'll have to crawl carefully until we get there," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded. He bent down on the hard surface and began crawling between two rocks. Harry followed right after him.

"Just be careful not to impale yourself," Harry said, inching in the same direction.

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah."

They managed to climb around the scattered debris and some sharp rocks. The hole was pretty deep so they levitated down safely. As they were levitating into the parts deep beneath the mountain, Harry could see the phosphorous rocks and other glimmering minerals. When they reached the bottom, it was too sharp and jagged to walk on so they charmed their shoes to be impenetrable so that the rocks wouldn't hurt them. The area was large and easy to get around. They found the main underground portion where it was a large hollow space with enough of a ceiling that a dragon would have no problem walking around.

Malfoy bent down. "I think this is some dead plants from outside," he said. "Maybe it was a nest."

"Or where they slept. It definitely seems big enough," Harry said, gazing around. "But we don't know if it was the Onyx Dragon that was in this mountain, but the egg shells from the first prove that they were here at one time."

Sighing, Malfoy stood up. "That doesn't help us if they're not there now."

Harry turned to him. "Well, even if they're not here anymore it rules out one place. If we find more evidence in Italy we might be able to figure out where they've migrated to."

Malfoy shrugged. "Or we'll just keep looking forever, finding clues as we go but never being able to catch up."

Harry watched the blond angrily kick some of the dead plants. He walked over to him and reached out a hand to put on his shoulder. Malfoy turned to him. His eyebrows were furrowed.

"Don't say that. We've lucked out far better than most people. Nobody else has found black egg shells. We've only just started."

"Yeah, I guess," Malfoy said, glancing away.

They were both silent for a few minutes. Harry looked around at the beautiful phosphorescent minerals.

"Let's keep going. Maybe there's more in some tunnel or niche around here."

Malfoy nodded. They walked around the dimly lit area. A couple times Harry glanced over at Malfoy to see if he was okay. While the mountain was spacious and had dead grass lying around, there was no sign of any egg shells or scorch marks. He could tell Malfoy was disappointed that there was nothing more there.

Harry walked up to him and put his hand on his arm. "What's wrong?"

Malfoy glanced away. "Nothing. I guess I was hoping those clues in the book would lead us directly to one."

"Things aren't usually that easy," Harry said. "Think about how long it took us to find the Blue Snargaluff."

"Yeah...that's what worries me," Malfoy muttered. He raked a hand through his hair as he turned away.

Harry dropped his arm. His heart skipped a beat. "Wait. Are we running out of time?"

Malfoy turned to face him and crossed his arms. "No. We have time."

Harry nodded. "Er, how much time? Do you know?"

Malfoy hesitated for a moment. "A little over a year from now."

There was a look on Malfoy's face that he couldn't place. Harry wanted to pry more but he held back. It was better than a couple months, but that still didn't feel like a lot of time for what they had to accomplish. It also seemed strange that there was a particular date for the Vow. Malfoy didn't seem to want to elaborate so he just continued searching around.

After a few minutes longer, they decided that there was nothing there. Harry chewed his lip uncertainly and then approached Malfoy's side.

"Well there aren't many mountains to search in this area. Just a couple."

"Yeah, we probably won't find anything," Malfoy said.

"You know, maybe after we search the other two mountains we could go somewhere to eat."

The blond turned. His expression was one of curiosity. "You mean not at the Inn?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Get a change of scenery. Maybe go to a nearby town."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "Won't Ron get suspicious?"

A bit taken aback, Harry just shrugged. "We could always say it took longer than we thought to search for clues. It's not like we have to eat with them."

Staring at him with an unreadable expression, Malfoy just shrugged. "Sure."

Harry watched him walk away and levitate upward. He followed, feeling a bit relieved. It had almost seemed like Malfoy had been distant, just more quiet than usual. It made him nervous. Hopefully getting away to eat dinner would cheer him up a bit.

The next couple of mountains didn't have any clues. Harry still tried to get Malfoy to focus on the fact they had even found one clue at all. It was already nearing early evening by the time they were flying back. They headed into a nearby town and found a restaurant that seemed rather accommodating.

They sat down and Harry sighed in relief. Searching for clues was tedious. They took a few minutes to order. After their butterbeers came, Harry took a sip and then glanced over at Malfoy. The blond was sipping his but he was still quiet.

"Malfoy."

The blond glanced up at him.

"Why don't you tell me about yourself."

The blond raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"I don't know. How it was growing up for you, or what you wanted to be when you were younger. You know more stuff about me, but I don't know much about you."

Malfoy tensed. "There's nothing really exciting to tell."

Rolling his eyes, Harry sighed. "How are we supposed to be dating if I don't learn anything about you?"

"Fine. It was fine growing up, for the most part."

Harry raised an eyebrow.

Malfoy sighed irritably. "What do you want me to say?"

"Just be honest. What did you want to be when you grew up? How was life in the wizard world?"

"Fine," Malfoy said, taking another sip. "I wanted to be a professional Quidditch player when I was younger. Either that or…"

"Or what?" Harry asked curiously.

Malfoy clenched his jaw. "Or a dragon trainer."

Harry laughed. "So _that's_ why you're so hard on Ron. You're jealous."

"I'm _not_ jealous of him, Potter! It was just a childish dream because my name means dragon and dragons always seem amazing to kids."

"Sure," Harry said, smiling. "I'm sure your parents were amused."

"Hardly," he drawled. "They quickly told me that while I could play Quidditch when I got to school, just for exercise, that it was a ridiculous notion. They already had my life planned out."

Harry's smile faded. "Well that doesn't seem fair."

Malfoy snorted. "They don't really care about being fair."

"So, you gave up on those dreams?"

He shrugged. "I didn't really have much of a choice. My parents controlled every aspect of my life."

Suddenly Harry remembered the fight Malfoy had with Narcissa, about saving himself for marriage. There was no way he could ask Malfoy if he was still a virgin. That was an awkward question. Not to mention it was Malfoy. He cared about his reputation and he probably wouldn't want to be a virgin until marriage. Still, Malfoy had told him the rumors about him being "adventurous" were just made up by Pansy.

"So…what about now?"

Malfoy's expression darkened. "They still are. With the Unbreakable Vow."

"Er, right," Harry said, glancing down briefly. "And you still don't want to talk about it?"

"No."

"So, er, if you don't mind me asking, what do they think about the job you have now?"

"They don't know about it," he said coolly.

"Oh. You're not in touch with them?" Harry asked, knowing he was taking a risk with prying.

Malfoy gazed up at him. "I don't really want to talk about my parents, Potter."

"I know you don't. It's just…at some point you're going to have to open up to me. We can't exactly have a relationship if you stay closed up."

Malfoy sighed. "What exactly do you want to know?"

Harry shrugged. "Anything. So I take it having controlling parents isn't fun?"

"No. It's not," he drawled.

"Well…it kind of seemed like you were happy or at least spoiled at Hogwarts."

"Yeah I was spoiled," Malfoy said, crossing his arms. "My father had no problem showing off his money and making it look like he did everything for me. He got me the best of the best in terms of material things, like clothing and brooms. What people didn't know was that I wasn't allowed to dabble in things that my family deemed a waste of time. Like Herbology. I really like Herbology but they didn't think it was important. Being the best at Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts were their top ones. Mostly because they wanted me to be able to learn how to do the Dark Arts hexes because that was taught during that class. And if I didn't get a good enough grade in the class that they deemed important, I was punished."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Punished? Like as in grounded?"

"Hardly. The material things didn't matter that much to me, except for having the best broom. If my father grew angry enough he would use hexes on me. He wasn't as bad as my Aunt Bella. When I failed to kill Dumbledore the first time, she actually Crucioed me."

"That's despicable. Wasn't your mother against that?"

"Yeah. She was more concerned for my well-being but honestly I think it's just being I'm their only heir. She's more worried that something will happen to me and their legacy won't continue. She did get angry at my father after what Bella did but she was stern too. She made me believe that following my father was the best thing for our family. And that I have this inevitable duty that I would be crazy to defy."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I remember seeing the fight you had with your mum. So does that mean you don't have to worry about your duties to the family anymore?"

Malfoy took a slow sip of his drink. "When I got into an argument with her she basically disowned me, but she only did that as a threat. She knows that the Unbreakable Vow makes it impossible for me to really leave. She was just biding her time. Of course the Vow doesn't state that I get my inheritance. That's what she was threatening me with."

Harry nodded in understanding. His throat had constricted when Malfoy mentioned the Vow. If it was impossible for Malfoy to leave his family, he would have to go back to them eventually, whether he wanted to or not. Malfoy said they had over a year to break the Vow. They were silent for a bit as they ate their dinner. Harry was lost in thought about what the Vow could be.

"I guess we'll have to go to Italy."

Harry blinked out of his daze. "Oh, yeah, most likely. We can stop by on our way back to pick up some tickets. We should probably rent a flying car."

"Yeah," Malfoy said.

As they walked out of the restaurant, Harry's hand unintentionally brushed up against Malfoy's.

"Oh, sorry," Harry said.

Malfoy smirked. "If you want to hold hands, Potter, just say so."

Harry flushed. "Shut-up."

They picked up a flying car (of course Malfoy had to have the black one, which was more expensive) and flew back in that. When they landed it was getting late. No one was around when they entered the lobby. The fire was no longer burning either so it was very dark. They walked to their rooms in silence. When they got there, Harry turned toward him.

"Try not to worry so much."

"Right. That's impossible, Potter, but I'll try."

Harry sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'm trying not to think about Voldemort."

Malfoy glanced at him. "Yeah. It's good we're going so far away. I doubt he's strong enough to travel even if he could find us."

"True, but we still should have a plan ready in case he does show up."

Malfoy nodded. "Yeah. I guess we better get some sleep. We have a long trip tomorrow."

Harry was sensing that Malfoy was still being more distant than usual. As Malfoy turned Harry reached out and grasped his wrist. Malfoy stopped.

"What?"

Harry glanced around and then gestured for him to go inside his room. Harry released his hold and Malfoy went inside. Harry followed him and closed the door.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk? You seem more down than usual today."

Malfoy looked a bit surprised but then he shrugged it off. "I'm fine, Potter. I don't want to talk about the Vow."

"I know you don't. We don't have to talk about it exactly."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"You can just express how you feel about it. It's obviously upsetting you."

"Potter, I'm fine. I just want to get some sleep," he said throwing his coat over his chair. He waved his wand and he was clad in his pajama pants and t-shirt.

Malfoy walked over to his bed and sat down on it. Harry sighed and walked over. "Come on, Malfoy. When are you going to open up to me?"

The blond gave him a look. "We're not girls, Potter."

"No, you're right, but we're human, Malfoy," Harry shot back in annoyance. "It's not only girls that talk things out."

Malfoy rolled his eyes and lay down. He stared up at the ceiling. "I'm fine. You can leave."

Harry stared at him for a minute. "How about we make a deal."

Malfoy turned his head to look at him.

"You can open up to me and tell me what's bothering you, and I'll do something for you."

Malfoy snorted. "Like what?"

Harry thought about it for a second. "I could give you a massage."

The second the words came out of his mouth he regretted them. Mostly because Malfoy began smirking.

"A massage?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "I suppose I could use that."

Malfoy sat up and began to take off his shirt. Harry flushed. "Fine. But you better hold up your end."

The blond just smirked slyly as he lay face down. Harry discovered some simple hand lotion in one of the drawers and figured that was good enough. He sat down on the bed and squirted some lotion into his hands. He murmured a slight warming spell to his hands and then pressed his hands down on Malfoy's back. The blond's back was smooth and warm. Harry pressed his thumbs down into his back muscles. Malfoy sighed contently. He dragged his fingers down Malfoy's back firmly. He watched as the muscles rippled beneath his fingers. After a few minutes of rubbing up and down his back, Harry cleared his throat.

"Malfoy?"

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "Right. My feelings. Because we're girls now."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well you are, you drama queen."

Malfoy ignored the comment. "I just don't want to be controlled anymore. I want to do things that I enjoy doing."

Harry paused. "Really? That's it?"

"What do you want from me? Tears?"

Harry cracked a smile. His hands went back up toward Malfoy's shoulders. "So what happens if we can't break the Vow? Are you stuck following in your family's footsteps?"

"Yeah," he said coolly. "Can you press any harder?"

Harry sighed. "Well it's kind of an awkward position," he said. His body was sitting to the side of Malfoy as his hands worked. "Here, I might be able to…," Harry trailed off as he sat up on the bed. "Er, I'm going to have to sit on you."

Malfoy's head rose. "What?"

"It will make it easier for me so my wrists are straight."

Malfoy lay back down. "Fine. Hopefully you're as light as you look."

"Shut-up," Harry muttered.

He put his leg over Malfoy's back so both knees were on either side of his waist. Of course he had to sit down on Malfoy's rear. He was grateful when Malfoy didn't make any comments about it. Digging in deeper, Harry moved his fingers up to Malfoy's neck. The blond made a sound in the back of his throat.

As Harry leaned forward, his legs automatically clenched around Malfoy. He tried to focus on the knots in his shoulders. Malfoy breathed out heavily. Harry decided not to ask any more questions. He had an idea now of why Malfoy was upset. His parents were trying to force him to follow in their footsteps, maybe to continue in the Dark Arts and secretly supporting Voldemort's ideals. The Ministry was making sure to keep Voldemort's return a secret from the public (minus McGonagall). If Malfoy's family ever found out their dear Dark Lord was trying to come back, it may sway them from trying to atone for everything and instead help him once again. Thankfully, Lucius couldn't do much from Azkaban and neither could Narcissa from House Arrest.

Malfoy made a sound of contentment in the back of his throat. Harry dragged his fingers down his arms and then back up to his neck again. Harry worked on the knots for a while. He blinked, feeling his eyes get heavy. He trailed his fingers up Malfoy's neck and began massaging the back of his head. The blond groaned. Harry's heart skipped a beat. He was suddenly starting to feel uncomfortable sitting on top of him. If his body reacted, Malfoy would be able to tell. His hands stopped moving.

"You feel better?"

The blond moved, sighing. "Yeah. And sleepy. You want a turn now?"

Harry blinked in surprise. "Oh, er, that's okay. You don't have to."

He got off Malfoy and the blond raised his head. "Come on, Potter. Lie down."

Harry shrugged, deciding it would be nice to get a massage. He took off his shirt and tossed it off to the side. Then he lay his head down on the pillow. He sighed as his muscles relaxed. Malfoy pressed his fingers down, rubbing the lotion into his back. His thumbs moved in circles as he went up his back. It felt amazing.

"You can sit on me, if you want. It might make doing this more comfortable," Harry suggested.

"It would make the massage more comfortable," Malfoy said. He didn't explain what wouldn't be comfortable.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. His head was off to the side and he was facing away from Malfoy. The blond did move and proceeded to sit down on him. That's when Harry realized what Malfoy meant. Even though he was still wearing his jeans, Malfoy was wearing his pajama pants. Harry could tell Malfoy was aroused. Although it wasn't completely noticeable, he felt the slight hardness on his tailbone. Harry swallowed nervously.

"Is that going to make it too uncomfortable for you?" he asked calmly. His heart was racing again.

Malfoy chuckled. "Why, Potter? Are you going to help me do something about it?"

Harry snorted. "I'm too tired to do anything sexual."

"Rain check then?" Malfoy asked, sounding amused.

Harry smiled a bit into the pillow. He closed his eyes. "Yeah, sure."

Malfoy's hands hesitated on his back. Harry barely noticed since he was so relaxed and sleepy. Malfoy started up again, moving his hands up to Harry's neck and massaging. His hands were so warm and very strong. He moved up and down his back. Harry barely noticed when Malfoy would continue moving his thumbs just slightly below his jeans to the end of his spine. The touch was so relaxing that Harry realized he could definitely get used to it.

Sometime later, Harry barely registered someone moving his body, or pulling a sheet over him. It wasn't until he opened his eyes and saw the light shining through the window that he realized he had fallen asleep. Raising his head, Harry turned. His heart just about stopped when he saw Malfoy lying next to him. It wasn't the fact that he had fallen asleep in Malfoy's bed, the medium full-sized bed that just comfortably fit the both of them. It wasn't just the fact that Malfoy was lying next to him. It was the fact that Malfoy had put the covers over him sometime during the night, but used a separate blanket for himself so he slept on top of the covers. He most likely did that for Harry's sake. Harry still had his shirt off and had fallen asleep in his jeans. Malfoy hadn't even bothered to change his jeans for pajamas with his wand, probably because he didn't want Harry to freak out in the morning.

Harry felt his throat constrict as he stared at Malfoy's peaceful face. He suddenly had an overwhelming urge to kiss him. Harry pulled his wand out of his pocket and freshened his breath. Then he went up to go to the bathroom. As he stared in the mirror he thought about how sweet it was for Malfoy to cover him up. He found himself smiling. He rinsed his face and dried off. When he walked back out, Malfoy was sitting up in bed. He stared at Harry as he emerged.

"Morning," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded. "Morning. I hope you don't mind. I didn't want to wake you, so…"

Harry smiled. "No problem."

He watched as Malfoy tapped his wand in his own mouth to freshen his breath. Then he rubbed his eyes. As he did so Harry walked back over to the bed and climbed up on it. Malfoy turned to him a bit surprised. Before Malfoy could open his mouth, Harry had wrapped his arms around him and kissed him. Malfoy was taken aback allowing Harry to be able to lie down on top of him. Malfoy made a sound in the back of his throat, but he wrapped his arms around Harry's bare back. Harry noticed he tasted like cinnamon. Malfoy trailed his hands up his back as their lips opened and closed around one another's. Harry tilted his head, breaking apart for a split second, and then pressed his lips firmly onto Malfoy's. The blond inhaled deeply through his nose, trailing his hand up to Harry's neck.

Harry's hands began to trail down Malfoy's sides. He felt like his body was on fire. Heat was rushing to his groin so fast he could barely think. His fingers brushed against Malfoy's pajama pants. As their mouths opened together, Harry slipped one finger beneath the band of his pants. Then he grasped it entirely after a slight hesitation. Slowly he began to pull on Malfoy's pants, revealing his gray boxers. Malfoy groaned. Their kiss broke for a split second as Malfoy lifted his hips. The blond breathed heavily as he helped slide his pants down. Harry helped a bit. He noticed the slight bulge in Malfoy's boxers. The blond then pulled his shirt over his head.

Harry was still hesitant and uncertain but Malfoy's fingers reached out toward his jeans. Harry glanced down as Malfoy unbuttoned them. He slid the zipper down and began to slide them off his hips. There was a part of him that was extremely nervous at the idea of Malfoy seeing him naked. He wasn't sure how far he wanted to go, but Malfoy had seen him in his boxers before. So while he was nervous, Harry let Malfoy slide his jeans down. Harry kicked them off and glanced at Malfoy. He was still hovering over the blond. Malfoy rose up more and pulled Harry down on top of him. Their bare chests touched and the warmth of the skin contact increased his desire. Malfoy pulled him up more on top of him and as soon as they lay down completely their groins touched. He could feel Malfoy's erection pressing up against his own. He had barely registered that he had an erection as well. The desire had hit him so fast that he wasn't aware of his own body, besides the heat that had traveled throughout.

Their mouths came together once again and Malfoy pushed against the back of his neck. Harry's arms went underneath him and wrapped around his shoulders. Malfoy's fingers caressed him up and down his back. After a few minutes of kissing passionately, Malfoy's fingers brushed even lower trailing over his rear. Even though he still had his boxers on, Harry could clearly feel him. The intimate touch made his stomach flip. Malfoy began to spread his legs, allowing Harry to lie between his legs. At first Harry was confused as to what he was doing until Malfoy's fingers pressed into his cheeks, pushing his pelvis down. Their erections rubbed together and Harry's grip on Malfoy's shoulders tightened. It sent a wave of pleasure through his groin. Malfoy groaned in the back of his throat.

There was a sudden knock on the door. They broke apart and Harry turned his head.

_Who is that?_

Malfoy just glanced at him, looking confused and irritated.

'_You can hide in the bathroom.'_

Harry glanced at him and then nodded. He got up and Malfoy put his pants and t-shirt back on. Harry went into the bathroom, making sure to keep the light off. He left the door ajar a crack. He heard Malfoy sigh as he got up and went to answer the door.

"What do you want, Weasley?"

"Sorry," Ron said quickly. Harry recognized his voice. "I'm just looking for Harry. Have you seen him?"

"No. I just got up," Malfoy said. "Have you checked his room?"

"Of course," Ron said gruffly. "And I checked downstairs."

"Well he's not here," Malfoy drawled.

"I – well I know you two sometimes meet to talk about your jobs. So I just thought –"

"I know what you thought," Malfoy said coolly. "He's not here. I need to take a shower and get dressed now."

"Fine," Ron grumbled. "Thanks for nothing."

The door closed and Malfoy grumbled something. Harry stepped out of the bathroom. Malfoy gazed at him as he walked over. A sly smirk crossed his face.

"You can always join me for a shower," he said quietly.

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Maybe next time. I'm going to go find Ron so he doesn't think I've gone missing. You know, with Voldemort on the loose and all."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah, I guess."

The blond walked past him into the bathroom. He waved his wand and his shirt and pants came off, leaving him clad in his boxers. Before he closed the door, he glanced at Harry.

"It's a shame, Potter. You could've seen my tattoo."

Harry opened his mouth just as Malfoy shut the door. Harry glared at the door. He got dressed and listened at the door before opening it. The hallway was clear. He walked toward the breakfast area and saw Charlie.

"Harry, there you are. Ron was looking for you," he said, coming up to him. "Where were you?"

"Oh, I was in the bathroom," Harry said. It was the truth, technically.

Charlie nodded. It looked like he was going to say something, but he didn't.

"So, where is Ron now?"

"He went to check the field. I'll go get him."

Harry nodded. "Thanks."

He went over to the table to dish out some breakfast. He tried not to think about what he and Malfoy had almost done. He still couldn't believe it had happened. It was strange. He never could've pictured himself with a guy, let alone Malfoy. Yet the desire he had felt was so strong and overpowering that all his awkwardness had washed away.

"Hey Harry."

Harry turned to see Ron and Charlie approaching him.

"Hey Ron."

"Charlie told me you were in the bathroom when I knocked on your door. I guess you didn't hear me."

"Yeah, sorry," Harry said.

"It's fine," Ron said, sitting down next to him. "So any luck on your job?"

Charlie sat down across from them, glancing at Harry. He looked away.

"Oh, er, no. We've checked all the areas around so I think we'll have to go to Italy now."

"Is that why I saw that fancy flying car outside?" Charlie asked.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Of course leave it to Malfoy to pick out something extravagant."

Ron snorted. "He hasn't changed."

Harry glanced at Ron. A part of him wanted to argue that he had, but then he would've had to explain. Moments later Malfoy appeared and Ron instantly stopped talking about him. Malfoy sat down on Harry's other side. He saw that Charlie was watching the blond curiously.

"So where are you guys headed to Italy?" Charlie asked.

"The Latium Mountains," Harry said.

"That's one of the locations. There are several," Malfoy added.

"Wow. Sounds like you guys are on an adventure," Charlie said, smiling. "So where are you going to stay?"

"There's a nice Inn nearby that mountain. It's hidden within another smaller mountain. That's how they hide it from muggles instead of just using protections. Only wizards would be able to find the entrance."

"Oh, right, the Secret Inn. I heard about that place," Charlie said. "It's supposed to be really nice. Even has a restaurant below the bedrooms in the Inn, I believe."

Malfoy grinned and nodded. "Yep. With some of the best butterbeer."

Ron's face turned sour. Harry sensed he was jealous of them. Not just for being able to go to a nice place and pay for nice meals and beds, but he had always been unhappy when it came to Malfoy and his extravagant lifestyle. If only Ron knew Malfoy had broken away from his family and his inheritance and was spending money that he earned, maybe Ron would feel a bit differently about him.

"Well I wish you guys luck on your journey. Are you leaving after breakfast?" Charlie asked.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. We have a pretty long trip. I think it's like 9 hours and that's using the speed charm."

Ron's eyes widened. "That's long. What the hell are you guys going to do for all that time?"

Malfoy tried to suppress his smirk. Harry caught a glimpse of it but Malfoy just stuffed food in his mouth to try and hide it. Harry wasn't sure if Charlie noticed or not.

"Er, well I think it has music installed in it. And…talking I guess."

"Or napping," Malfoy added. "It doesn't require a driver since it has an auto pilot function on it."

"Really?" Harry asked, his eyes lighting up. "So that's why you wanted that one."

Malfoy grinned. "Well that and it had the best color."

Harry gave him a look. "Malfoy, we're going to be invisible the entire way there. What does the color matter?"

Malfoy shrugged. "The other auto pilots were the same price anyway. So I figured I'd choose a color I liked."

Harry snorted. "Okay. So how does the auto pilot work?"

"You just plug in your starting and final destination. It chooses the safest sky paths to take. It scans for dangers too like birds or muggle planks."

Harry practically spit out his pumpkin juice and instead choked on it. Ron patted his back.

"Are you okay?"

Harry laughed and choked at the same time. "Malfoy…it's _plane_ not…plank."

"Whatever," Malfoy said.

Harry laughed again. "That doesn't even make sense."

"Like plane does?!" Malfoy snapped.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well I suppose plank makes more sense than grasshipper."

The second the word slipped out and the memory came back Harry burst into laughter. Malfoy's lips curled into a smile and he laughed.

"That's still not as bad as the mirror incident."

Harry just laughed harder. Ron was staring at them in shock. The expression on his face, however, made Harry just laugh harder until he couldn't breathe. Malfoy was laughing too although he had covered his mouth.

"What mirror incident?" Ron asked finally, looking between them.

"Harry jumped 10 feet in the air when a mirror talked to him. He turned as pale as a ghost," Malfoy said, snickering.

The wizard term 'pale as a ghost' was probably equivalent to the muggle saying 'white as a sheet'. Harry, however, was concentrating more on the fact that Malfoy had called him by his first name. He didn't even appear to have noticed.

"Not used to them, huh, Harry?" Charlie asked, smiling.

Harry shook his head. "No. And Malfoy gave me no warning."

"I didn't think I had to," he shot back.

"Hey, what's all the laughing about?" Harley asked, coming over to join them. "What did I miss?"

"Potter's most embarrassing moments," Malfoy said, smirking.

"And yours," Harry shot back.

"Nobody here is going to think those are embarrassing. Only you know muggle terms."

"I know a few," Selena said, walking over. "Tell me them, Harry."

Nodding, Harry proceeded to explain the whole situation regarding the grasshopper, which to his satisfaction Selena understood. And then to Malfoy's utter horror Harry told them about the dragon poop incident. Ron started laughing so hard his face turned red.

"It sounds like you guys have some fun on your adventures," Harley said, grinning. "Makes me miss the times when I was still out observing dragons in the wild."

"Me too," Selena said. "I love training, but sometimes it's nice to go out and explore the world."

"Well, we'll just have to live vicariously through them," Harley said, gesturing to Harry and Malfoy. "Which means, of course, that you two have to come and visit again."

"Definitely," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded in agreement.

Harry and Malfoy said their goodbyes to everyone after breakfast. Selena gave them both a hug. Harley gave Harry a pat on the back. Ron was looking a bit sullen so Harry pulled him off to the side.

"Hey," Harry said. "So how's everything going with you and Hermione?"

Ron glanced at him and then shrugged. "Honestly, we've been so busy we haven't had time to see one another."

"I noticed you blushing around Selena," Harry pointed out, smiling.

Ron flushed. "Seriously?! Merlin, I hope she didn't notice."

"It's fine. I think it's cute."

"Harry, it is not cute," Ron said firmly. "I do think she's pretty. And I think with Hermione gone I get a bit lonely sometimes. What about you? Any pretty girls at your job?"

Harry tensed. "Er, no. I mean, at least no girls I'm interested in."

"Oh," Ron said. "So…are you and Malfoy like…friends?" he asked, after hesitating.

Harry blinked. Then he swallowed. "Yeah, kind of. I mean, I've gotten to know him better from working with him. He's honestly not as bad as he used to be. He can still be annoying and arrogant, but otherwise he's a lot nicer than he seemed at Hogwarts. Maybe it was just everything he went through during the war. I don't know. But at least he's better."

Ron was silent. He was staring at Malfoy who was still talking with Harley and some others.

"Anyway, you should cheer up. You said Hermione was getting a break soon, right?"

"Yeah, but not for a little while longer. Then she'll have two weeks. Her program is so intense there. Of course, she loves it, but that just means I don't have a girlfriend to hang out with."

"It's okay. Her program only has one more year to go after she's done with this semester, right?"

Ron nodded glumly. "Yeah. That feels like forever."

"Don't worry. You guys will work it out."

"I know," he said. "Well…good luck with everything."

Harry's smile faded. He wished he could tell Ron what was going on. He certainly needed someone to talk to. Maybe he could talk to Neville again when they got back from Italy.

"Thanks. Let me know when Hermione is free so we can all get together."

"I will," he said.

"See you," Harry said.

Ron waved goodbye as Harry walked toward Malfoy, who was now waiting by the door. They both walked out together, waving at everyone as they made their way to the flying car. They got inside and Malfoy pressed specific functions on the car that made them fly up high and turn invisible. Then he typed in their destination and stuck his wand inside a specific port. The auto pilot function was then activated.

Malfoy then turned to him and smiled. "Come on. I'll show you the back."

He then slipped out of his seat and headed toward the back. Harry followed suit. The back was pretty spacious. It had one large, long plush seat in back, which as Malfoy demonstrated could lean backward so someone could lie down and take a nap. There was a built-in cooler on one side of the plush seat with butterbeers, nettle juices, and fizzy drinks. On the other side was a cabinet built into the wall that popped out when it was tapped by a wand. It held snacks of all kinds.

"Wow," Harry said, smiling. "This is really nice."

He sat down next to Malfoy on the plush seat. Malfoy handed him a butterbeer. Harry took a large gulp. It wasn't a simple butterbeer, vanilla flavored, but he relished the warm feeling it gave in the pit of his stomach. Harry leaned his head back against the seat.

"So we won't get there until evening."

"Yeah. Our rooms are already set up so all we have to do is check in."  
>"I thought I was going to pay for the next trip," Harry said.<p>

Malfoy shrugged. "It's my problem we're going here for."

Harry swallowed. "Yeah, I guess, but let me pay for the next trip. If we don't find the dragon here," he added.

"Fine," Malfoy said, glancing at him.

They both sipped on their butterbeers. Malfoy turned the music on in the background just loud enough for them to hear but soft enough that it was relaxing and not distracting.

"So, Potter, are Weasel and Granger still together?"

Harry turned to face him. "Yeah. Why?"  
>Shrugging, the blond took another sip. "Just curious."<p>

They were silent for another few minutes. Then Malfoy set his empty butterbeer down and pressed the button so the backing to the plush seat would expand and go backwards.

"Are you taking a nap?" Harry asked, as his body was now in a lying position. He began to sit up.

Malfoy smirked. "Not exactly."

He took Harry's almost-finished butterbeer and set it down. Harry's heart skipped a beat as Malfoy then positioned himself over him. He stared into Malfoy's gleaming silver-blue eyes as the blond leaned down. Harry shut his eyes the second he felt the warm touch of lips upon his. Malfoy kissed him languidly. The blond then rested his body on top of his. He felt Malfoy's hands come under his neck. Malfoy pressed his lips firmly down around his, opening his mouth through the kiss. Harry's lips parted as well. They shared an open-mouthed kiss with their lips opening and closing on one another's. Malfoy moved his head as their kissing became more passionate.

Malfoy broke apart and rose up enough so that he could pull his shirt off. Harry stared at his hairless chest and smooth, ivory skin. His abs clenched as he hovered back over him. Malfoy grabbed the ends of Harry's shirt and began lifting. Harry put his arms up over his head to make it easier. Harry's chest was also hairless and well-toned. He was tanner than Malfoy though. His skin was a light golden-brown. His frame was thinner than Malfoy's but he was still just as muscular.

The blond leaned back down, opening his mouth on his. His hands rested on the back of Harry's neck again, pushing his head upward. Just as he did that, opening his mouth, Harry's lips parted. Malfoy's tongue slid inside and Harry's lips parted more. Their tongues slid against one another and he heard Malfoy moan. His own body was beginning to react. Malfoy lie back down on top of him and Harry wrapped his arms around him. His fingers trailed lightly down Malfoy's back. Their kiss broke apart with a slight sound and then Malfoy pushed his mouth on his roughly, sliding his tongue in his mouth again. Harry felt Malfoy's hand trail down his neck and across his side until they reached his jeans.

Harry's hands tightened around Malfoy when he felt the blond's fingers trail across the buttons and down toward his crotch. The blond rubbed his hand up and down. While he couldn't feel much through the jeans, Harry could feel enough. The rhythm of his hand sent a wave of desire through him. His erection sprung to life and warmth spread to his stomach. Harry made a sound in the back of his throat as their tongues continued to slide together. Malfoy's fingers left his crotch and went back up to the buttons. He began to unbutton his jeans with one hand and slide the zipper down. He yanked at them, pulling them off his hips. Harry lifted his hips a bit to make it easier. The jeans slid down his legs to the end. Malfoy used his feet to push them away as he adjusted his position on top of him. The blond rose up for another second, breaking their kiss momentarily, as he undid his jeans as well.

Harry watched him in a sort of trance. The butterbeer was keeping him more relaxed than he would've been. Even his intimate moments with Ginny had been nerve-wrecking because he was so inexperienced. Relationships and intimacy didn't come easy to him. Malfoy slid his jeans off completely and placed his legs in between Harry's, causing his legs to spread out a bit. Just as Malfoy bent down towards his face and just as their lips connected, the blond's body lay flush against his own. Malfoy moved his hips up brushing his erection against Harry's. This time there was no one there to stop them. It made him a bit nervous. A part of him was uncertain exactly how far Malfoy wanted to go, but the other part of him wanted to continue.

Malfoy moved his hips against rubbing their erections firmly together. The blond moaned loudly. Harry made a sound in the back of his throat. His hands moved up Malfoy's back toward his shoulders. Malfoy trailed one hand down between them, touching Harry's thigh. He moved Harry's leg out a bit more and then he thrust his pelvis against his. Their erections rubbed roughly. Their kiss broke and Malfoy moaned. He leaned his head face-down next to him. Harry gasped as pleasure jolted through his body. The angle at which Malfoy was rubbing caused the head of his penis to be rubbed back and forth.

The pleasure was indescribable. Harry groaned, arching his back. He was always usually more reserved when it came to making noises. Even though he and Ginny had only had sex a couple times, he had been reserved both times. It wasn't that it hadn't been enjoyable, but it was strange for him to let someone so close. Malfoy moaned next to his ear. He thrust again and again. Harry's fingers dug into Malfoy's back. Every time he thrust, Harry felt his orgasm building. His legs clenched around Malfoy's. Harry groaned again. The pleasure was becoming so intense that his embarrassment over the noises he was making vanished.

Malfoy was gasping by his ear. He began to kiss down his neck and Harry's eyes shut momentarily. His back arched, causing his pelvis to rise just as Malfoy thrust against him. They both groaned loudly. Harry could feel his legs tensing up as his orgasm approached. Malfoy was panting breathlessly and his thrusting came in short, fast, hard thrusts. Harry's grip around him tightened even more. He groaned, his lips parting as he gasped. He could hear Malfoy's groaning becoming more frequent. He knew the blond was close too. Harry raised his legs up and latched them around Malfoy. The blond's hands grabbed his hips, thrusting continuously. Harry groaned, his head tilting backward as his orgasm struck him. Malfoy thrust a couple times before he moaned gripping the material of the plush seat. Harry could feel the wetness both from himself and from Malfoy seeping through their boxers. Harry unwound his legs from around Malfoy.

Harry's breath was coming in short gasps as his heartbeat gradually began to return back to normal. He opened his eyes. Malfoy's head was still lying next to him as he fought to catch his breath. The blond's body was still lax on top of him. After a minute, Malfoy raised his head. Even though Harry felt slightly embarrassed, their eyes met for a second.

The blond grinned. "Thanks for the rain check."

Harry fought the blush that was creeping on his face. He raised his eyebrows. "No problem."

Malfoy got up off of him and grabbed his wand from his pants. He waved a spell and that seemed to clean his boxers. He then waved the spell at Harry as well.

"Er, thanks," Harry said, glancing away in embarrassment.

Malfoy smirked and then waved his wand, changing into his pajama pants. He kept his shirt off. Harry decided to do the same. He had grabbed his wand out of his jeans and gave himself some pajama pants. It was too hot for a shirt anyway. Malfoy was lying down, having grabbed two pillows for them. He adjusted the seat so that instead of completely lying down they were just leaning back, resting their heads against the pillows. He then got up and grabbed them both another butterbeer.

"Thanks," Harry said, taking it. They still had 7 hours to go. "Taking a nap would help the time pass faster but then we wouldn't be able to sleep during the night."

"True. We could stay up and do research."

"Research?"

"Yeah there's a book store a couple blocks from the Inn. We could borrow some books and take it back there to look over until we get tired. We should also search for the family of the guy who spotted a dragon many years ago. They may still live somewhere around there."

Harry nodded. "Okay."

Malfoy turned up the music a bit and took a sip of his butterbeer. Malfoy closed his eyes. Harry stared at him for several long minutes. He couldn't believe he had had an orgasm with Malfoy. It was almost surreal. And it had felt amazing. Much more amazing than the couple of times he had been with Ginny.

The rest of the ride there was spent listening to music or talking about random things, including Quidditch. Harry found that it was pretty easy to talk to Malfoy, when he opened up. They arrived in Italy to the Inn at around 7. They went to the book store first to check out as many books as they could find relating to the dragon and the person who spotted it. They took them back with them to the Inn and checked in.

Malfoy had booked them a double room. They had two separate beds but they were sharing one large room and bathroom. It was a lot cheaper than two separate rooms. Plus there was a divider that they could use if they wanted privacy from one another. The beds were full-sized so they were a decent size. There was a large table in front of a small fireplace and a couch in front of the table. They both placed the books down on the table and sat down on the couch. Malfoy went down to the restaurant below to get them some dinner while Harry began to sift through one of the books.

When Malfoy came back, he handed Harry his meal.

"Thanks," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded and then sat down next to him. "Find anything yet?"

"Nothing we already don't know," Harry said, flipping the page.

They both fell into silence. They began to eat their meals while still looking through the books. Hours passed by rather quickly. Harry was absorbed in the reading material. A lot of it was general facts about dragons with very little information about the Onyx Dragon.

Malfoy sighed irritably and closed another book. "Nothing useful."

Harry flipped the page. "Yeah. Hey, wait a second."

"What?" Malfoy asked, turning his head to face him. The blond scooted closer to him.

"There's a list of names here of all the people that claim to have seen the Onyx Dragon and the locations of where they were supposedly spotted. In this area, specifically this city near the mountains, it says someone named Micah Riscucci spotted one. That might be our guy."

"Good," Malfoy said. "Then we can ask around here about the Riscucci family. Someone is bound to know them and if they still live around here."

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

Malfoy yawned. "I guess we should try and get some more sleep. Surprisingly I'm still tired."

"Me too," Harry said.

They both got up and got into their respective beds.

"Night," Harry said.

Malfoy glanced at him and smiled. "Night," he said.

Harry lay down. He made sure that anything he thought about he didn't direct at Malfoy. Even if he was thinking about Malfoy, so long as it wasn't something directed at him, Malfoy couldn't hear him. He tried not to think about what they did. His face flushed every time he did. Turning over, Harry stared at Malfoy who had turned on his side. Harry realized that he didn't regret being intimate with Malfoy, which meant he was definitely developing feelings for him. Now the issue wasn't just breaking the mysterious Vow, but also how he was going to tell his friends.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**To Reviewers: **

**Starr Whompin:** Thanks so much for coming back to the story! I know I had it on hiatus for a while, but I'm back! I'm determined to finish this. I'm so glad you love this story and how I'm characterizing them both. Yay! I will definitely update asap!

**StubbornBlonde**: Yay! I'm so happy you liked the last chapter. Hopefully you like this one even more, since the romance is heating up! Tehehe! I will update soon!

**DeiStarr**: Yayyyyyy! The romance is heating up! I'm glad you liked the snogging in the last chapter, so I'm sure you liked what happened in this one! Hehehehehehe! I'm glad the Vow and the Onyx Dragon is still intriguing to you. I hope that it continues! I will update ASAP!

**Padfootette**: Thanks! I'm so happy you liked the chapter! Yay! I hope you liked this one too! I will definitely update soon!

**HPmeghan7474**: Hahahah! Yes, the poor boys can't ever get some privacy for their intimacy. Oh, wait…in this chapter it finally happened! MUAHAHAHA! I had you going there in the beginning though, right? When they were interrupted by Ron? You were probably like, "damn you Angelic Candy! You're torturing us on purpose!" But I rewarded you all in the end. (*smiles*) I hope you feel a little less nervous now about Harry's feelings toward Draco. He's figuring things out, lol! But nothing is ever perfect, right? I will definitely update soon!

**Lordpink**: Yep! I'm updating regularly now! Sorry it took 2 weeks this time instead of 1. I took a few days off during the holiday. (*looks away guiltily*) But I'm going to continue to make updates regularly even if they vary a little bit time-wise. I promise not to keep you waiting long! I'm so glad that you like the storyline and I hope you continue to! And in response to your question, I have no idea why there aren't more reviews. Don't get me wrong, I'm perfectly content with the amount that I am getting. It's better than getting none (like what happened before), but I do know that about 88 people are following this story and maybe half, if that, are reviewing. Odd, I know, but I appreciate you reviewing, so thank you! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I will update asap!

**WammygirlZ**: Yay! I'm so glad you liked the chapter! I hope you really liked this one too! I took my time, a little longer than usual, on this chapter, but hopefully it's still a good length. I didn't want to overload the chapter with too many things going on at once. I'm so glad you like the action sequences. There will be more to come! Yes, I agree, I like the slow build of romance. It makes it that much more believable but also more worth it when they finally get together. You got a little taste of that in this chapter, hehehehe! (*smiles innocently*) I'm glad you think I'm keeping their core personalities. It's hard to do when pairing these two together, but let me know if anything is out-of-character. I'm glad it's believable so far. I will update shortly!

**Guest**: Awww, well thanks for reviewing. I feel so honored since you don't usually review. I'm glad you really like this story! I'm so glad that you can get into it. I hope you enjoyed the romantic scene in this one too. I will update soon!

**AlbinoHorse**: I'm so glad you liked that chapter! Now that things are really heating up, I hope you liked this one even more, hehe! And you are very perceptive! That's all I'm going to say, but yes, you're on the right track in your theories. I won't say which parts. I know, I don't want to let this story go either. I had a hard time breaking away from Captivation so hopefully this will end up being a lot of chapters. I don't have every chapter planned out, just a general outline, so I'm not exactly sure how many chapters it will have. But I promise not to rush it so lasts as long as possible. =) Don't worry Harry will start taking more control soon. He's figuring out his feelings more slowly than Malfoy. Oh good, I'm so glad the tattoo is growing on you (even though you don't know what it is yet). It was a nice incentive for the sexual tension, lol! Thank you! You're so sweet! I'm glad you think this is amazing. Hopefully I won't disappoint you in future chapters. I will update shortly!

**Carling**: Aww, thank you! I'm so glad that you like the romance build-up! Yeah, I hate stories where the romance isn't built up, but just already there. It doesn't feel believable that way, or if it happens too fast. And yes, I do believe that "being since" is an expression. Grammar sucks. Half the time it doesn't even make sense, lol! I'm so sorry to hear about your illness! That must be really hard. I'm glad though that my story is helping to make you feel a little better. I'll try harder to make sure that I post as quickly as possible. It was a little delayed this last time because of the holidays (I took a few days off), but it will be updated regularly. Yes, that Vow is looming overhead. I don't want to spoil anything so I won't say much about it. I'm glad you like the tattoo mystery. Harry is getting closer to seeing it (*winks*). I know, I'm not a huge fan of Ginny, nor Hermione/Ron. This is the first story where I have Ron and Hermione still a couple. Normally I find other characters for them, as you know from Captivation. Yeah, it's funny you say that! I always preferred Luna or Hermione for Harry too! Darn you J.K. Rowling.

Yes, Harry is bad at relationships. The poor boy just didn't get to grow up as a normal teenager. But at least Draco's helping him out, lol! I'm glad you like Draco. Oh dear! Typos?! I always try and review before or after posting, but sometimes I miss things. Let me know if you catch anything major. Oh, I went back and changed a couple things already, like mistaking Fred for being alive instead of George, lol! And also Dobby…so those mistakes were corrected. It's been so long since I read the books. Thanks again! Glad you like the story! I will update asap!

**idreamofdrarry**: Every time I see your name I think of the "I dream of Jeannie" song, lol! Except then I image it with Draco and Harry. =) I'm sooooooo glad that you like this story. And so sorry about it not being complete yet. I know it's annoying to have to wait for chapters. I completely understand, which is why I try and update as quickly as possible. I took a few days off over the 4th so that's why it was delayed more than usual. Hopefully you are not suffering too badly! And yes the romance can be excruciating when the build-up is tortuous, but it makes it that much more worth it. You got a taste of that in this chapter, hehe! So yes, the romance is heating up! Oh yes, no worries, graphic sex scenes in the near future. Lol! I wouldn't torture you guys with anticipation and then give you nothing in return (*winks*).

Oooo! Your theory about Cyprian – very perceptive. I'm glad you think they're still in character. That's always important! Oh good, I'm so glad you like the details. I love details. Sometimes too much, lol! I will definitely watch out for the choppiness on the background info. Thanks for pointing that out. =) Yes, everything you're wondering about you will find out eventually. You will unfortunately have to be patient. Oh and I fixed the bit about Dobby in that chapter A Silver Lining. Thanks for pointing that out as well! It's been so long since I read the books, lol! Ron and Hermione don't have a lot of role right now because it's focusing on Draco and Harry's relationship build-up, but they will still be relevant down the line. Thanks again! I will update asap!

**Moonitude**: Yay! Thanks so much! I'm so glad this is your favorite Drarry story. I'm very happy to hear that you like it. It's okay if you don't have any constructive criticism. Just hearing that you like it is enough for me! =) I will update asap!


	15. A Step Closer

_**Luminescence**_

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: ****So sorry about the delay! **If you read my profile, I alert you when something is going to be delayed and my estimated timeframe. I just found out that the national exam I'm studying for (well one of them) they've now added a new date on for August 17th. The next test wasn't supposed to be until November 2nd but I guess they're giving us an extra chance to pass.

That's right around the corner so I've had to increase my studying, which of course interferes with how quickly I update. **I promise to still update on a regular basis. Due to this test some chapters might be out around 2 weeks instead of 1 week. So bear with me! Thanks for reviewing (and being patient!). Oh yes, and more yummy romance, so enjoy! =)**

**Chapter 14: A Step Closer**

Harry woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. When he turned over, he noticed that Malfoy wasn't in bed. He glanced around but he wasn't anywhere. Harry got up to go to the bathroom and then proceeded to get dressed. Just as he was pulling up his pants, Malfoy walked in.

"Oh, hey," Harry said, zipping up his jeans. He quickly pulled his shirt over his head.

Malfoy stared at him and nodded. "I was just down talking to some people. One of them knows where Riscucci's family lives. We can go check out their place and ask some questions, see if any family members knew about their ancestor's dragon sighting."

Harry nodded. "Sounds good."

"Oh, and just so you know I did take Snape's potion."

He blinked. "I almost forgot. That's good that you remembered."

"It's hard to forget when the Dark Lord is on the loose," Malfoy said with a raised eyebrow. "We can go downstairs for some breakfast before we head out."

"Yeah, I'm starved," Harry said.

"Malfoy there's something we have to figure out," Harry said, after a minute.

The blond looked up. "What?"

"Well…if this dragon's flame is super powerful, we have to have a plan as to how we're going to contain it."

Malfoy nodded. "That's a good idea, Potter. We'll probably need some sort of super charged special container. One that doesn't shatter easily and maybe even putting some charms on it might help."

"Yeah. There might be some relic shops in the area we could check out later."

They went down into the restaurant area to get breakfast. They sat at a comfy private area with two velvet-covered seats, an oakwood table and a floating candle that hovered above them. Harry ordered a pumpkin fizz drink. As they ate, Malfoy summoned a map to show him where they needed to go.

Tilting his head, Malfoy stared at him curiously. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

Harry glanced up. "Not really. I'm just trying to think of a plan if - when Voldemort attacks again. I have no idea what he might be planning especially if he can't get to my body."

"Well hopefully he won't know you took the potion again."

"Yeah but what if he found a way around the potion?"

Malfoy stared at him for a minute. "We'll think of something. He's weak. There's not much he can do, thankfully."

Harry could tell Malfoy was fearful but he was trying to hide it.

"Yeah. It just always seems like he finds a way to escape defeat. I hope this time is the last one."

They both fell into silence. After they finished eating they took off toward the address of a known living relative of Micah Riscucci. It wasn't too far of a broom ride. When they got there a young woman answered.

"Yes?"

"Hi. Are you related to Micah Riscucci?" Harry asked.

The woman blinked the nodded. "What do you want?"

"Sorry to intrude," Malfoy said, shaking his hair out of his eyes. "We really need to talk to you," he said, giving her a small smile.

Her eyebrows furrowed uncertainly but she at least didn't tell them to go away.

_I see you can be very charming when you want to be._

Malfoy glanced at him for a split second. He saw the corner of his mouth twitch.

"What is this about? Why are you asking about my uncle?"

"We're studying dragons and we heard that your uncle has seen an Onyx Drag—" Malfoy began.

"Look. People have come before and they never believe me when I tell them what he told me. So please just –"

"We found some egg shells," Harry interrupted quickly.

She stared at him in astonishment. She looked back and forth between them.

"You mean…eggs from an Onyx Dragon?"

They both nodded. After a brief pause she gestured for them to come inside. She led them into a sitting room.

"I can make some tea if you'd like."

"I'm okay, thanks," Harry said. Malfoy shook his head to signal he was fine as well. "Malfoy, why don't you show her the eggs."

The blond gazed at him in surprise. Then he nodded. He unshrunk the egg shell pieces they found. She took them gently in her hands and stared at him in wonder.

"I don't believe it. After all this time…I just wish my uncle were here to see this." She raised her head. "My name is Celleana by the way."

"I'm Draco and this is Harry Potter."

Harry abruptly turned toward him in annoyance.

_Really?_

_ 'What? It will make her more receptive to talking.'_

"Harry Potter!" her eyes widened. "Oh, my uncle would've loved to meet you. I guess it makes sense now."

"What does?" Harry asked.

She smiled. "Why pieces were found now. It's because of you. You're always doing something amazing."

Harry flushed. Malfoy raised an eyebrow at him but thankfully didn't comment telepathically or otherwise. She stood up and went over to a wall. Waving her wand, she revealed a hidden space. She pulled out a dusty old journal and then headed back to them.

"This was my uncle's journal. I don't know if it contains anything important. I'm hoping that you will be able to figure it out," she said, handing it to Harry.

"You can't open it?" he asked.

"No, I can open it. It's just…it's very strange. I just can't read it," she said, shaking her head. "I figured out the password. It's _'zwarte schoonheid'_. It's Dutch for 'black beauty'. It was the nickname he gave the dragon."

Harry waved his wand over it murmuring the password. It clicked open and Harry saw strange symbols, like brush strokes almost. They were very distinct. His eyes suddenly picked up a few words. It was as though all of a sudden the symbols came together and formed words. It was only when he stared at it long enough.

"I can make out some words when I stare really hard," Harry said.

"Really?" she asked with wide eyes.

Malfoy peered over his shoulder. "It looks like gibberish to me."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. He stared at it closely. He could see that it was a bunch of brush strokes but when he stared at it collectively he could read it.

"I've checked it against every language in the world," she said. "How is it that you can read it?"

Harry's eyes widened. "Wait…could this be Parseltongue?"

"Parseltongue isn't a written language," Malfoy said.

Celleana sat up straight in her seat. "Parseltongue? But…my uncle couldn't speak that."

"And if it was Parseltongue you'd be able to read the whole thing," Malfoy said to him. "So why can you only make out some words?"

"Unless it's a language close to Parseltongue," Harry said, glancing at him. He stared into Malfoy's eyes and at his curious expression. Despite that they were in front of someone Harry had the urge to kiss him.

"Oh my….,"she trailed off and her eyes widened. "It must be the Draconian language."

"Draconian?" Harry asked. "You mean the language of the dragons? I didn't realize they had a language."

"Well only people with special gifts, very rare gifts, can speak to the dragons. It's an ability that had been pretty much lost over time, especially with the hunting of the dragons," she explained. "Learning the language is nearly impossible. You have to have the gift. And there's only one type of person who has the gift. They come very seldom."

"What type of person?" Malfoy asked.

"One whose Animagus form is that of a dragon," she whispered. "I never knew my uncle possessed such a gift, but this must be why he was so fascinated and obsessed with them. He probably transformed into one and lived among them. That's probably how he saw one in the first place."

"That makes sense. Serpents are similar to dragons, especially some of the larger ones," Malfoy said. "So it makes sense that you would recognize some words."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, but if I only recognize a couple how are we going to read it?"

"There's only one way," she said. "You have to find a serpent that can read it, one whose ancestry is tied with dragons."

Harry glanced at Malfoy.

"There is a library in the town over. It's a vast collection of things, some of them from many years ago. There's a lot of history to this country so you might be able to find something of use there," she said. "You can keep the journal and when you've translated it, if you can, bring it back to me and let me know what it says."

Harry and Malfoy both nodded in agreement. She smiled at them. They got up and headed to the door.

"Thanks," Harry said to her.

Malfoy nodded to her.

She smiled back. "Thank you, both of you. This means a lot to me."

Once they left, Harry sighed and turned to Malfoy. "So do you want to go to the library now?"

He shrugged. "Might as well. There's no use procrastinating."

The two of them flew to the library. On the outside it looked like a cathedral, but on the inside one of the pastors there knew what they meant when they asked about the library. He showed them into one of the back rooms where there was a secret passage within a wall. They went inside to see a vast collection of old books. Many of them had cobwebs on them. It wasn't beautifully kept like the church part of it.

"I don't even know what I'm looking for," Harry muttered as he flipped open a book.

"Anything about serpents."

"Great. That's helpful."

Malfoy gave him a look but didn't respond. They both searched around for a while. Harry found some information on Basilisks but he didn't think summoning one of those would be helpful. After some time of looking through books, when Harry was sure he was going cross-eyed, he finally closed it and sighed. He rubbed his eyes. He glanced over to see Malfoy staring at him.

"What?"

"Nothing," he said. There was an amused look on his face but Harry wasn't sure why.

"Did you find anything?"

"Not much yet, but I think I'm on the right track. This book has information on a lot of different types of serpents but I just haven't found the right one."

Harry nodded. He rubbed his temples. When he opened his eyes Malfoy was standing in front of him. He grabbed both of Harry's hands and pushed them up against the shelves of books.

"You just need to relax," he said with a sultry smile.

Harry raised an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to retort and found Malfoy's lips pressed against his. Malfoy pushed his body up against his as he deepened the kiss. Harry instinctively tried to wrap his arms around him but his arms were trapped. He attempted to move his hands but Malfoy just slipped his fingers between his, squeezing tight. Harry's fingers tightened around his as he felt a tongue slip in his mouth. Malfoy pressed his crotch against his and thrust. Harry groaned in the back of his throat. He could feel the heat building and he broke the kiss.

"Not here, Malfoy, someone might hear us."

The blond pulled away staring at him with a pleased expression. "Are you sure you want me to stop?" he asked by his ear. The blond's hand slid downward ghosting over his erection. Harry's stomach flipped in excitement.

He swallowed. "I'd rather not have to explain to the pastor what we're doing back here. I doubt he'd appreciate us defiling his library."

Malfoy snorted and pulled his hands away. He grinned and then turned away to go back to reading his book. Harry picked up another book and started looking through it. He could still feel his heart pounding in his chest.

"I found something."

Harry turned around and walked over to him. There was a passage in the book about an Occamy serpent, which had a similar face to a dragon but the body of a serpent and translucent silver wings which matched the color of the eggs it laid.

"Well this is ironic," Malfoy murmured.

"What is?" Harry asked.

The blond's lips twitched then he shrugged. "An Occamy is technically a serpent but has characteristics of a dragon. It's a very powerful creature and while it's not rare they're not easy to find either."

"Of course they're not," Harry said sarcastically. "Okay. So where are they usually?"

"They like cool and damp or even swampy areas. I think I saw a swamp on the map. It might not be in this area. I can't remember."

"Okay. We should stop back at the Inn and double check where it is. We can grab some lunch and then explore the swamp," Harry said.

Malfoy nodded in agreement. They took off back toward the Inn. The nearest swamp was miles away so it would be a longer broomride. During lunch Harry couldn't stop thinking about their relationship and how it was actually progressing. He never could have pictured them being together even after they had talked about dating. It hadn't felt real. It was starting to get more serious and Harry knew that telling his friends was the right thing to do. He could wait to tell them about dating until they got together with Hermione. That would give him time to think of what to say. He at least had to tell them they were living together. He didn't want to risk another blow-up with Ron or Hermione.

"You ready?" Malfoy asked.

"Er, give me one minute," Harry said.

Malfoy gazed at him curiously as he went back upstairs. He sent a secure owl to Ron explaining the situation of him and Malfoy living together because of the danger. He decided to leave out the dating part for the time being. He didn't want Ron to keel over from a heart attack. Harry ran back downstairs and they took off.

"So are Occamies dangerous?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, they can be," Malfoy said. "Especially if they're guarding eggs."

"What kind of defenses do they have?"

"The book said that while their bite isn't poisonous, it can certainly be very bad. Also if it gets close enough to wrap its body around you, it can squeeze you to death."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "I'd hate to see what it could do when it's protecting its eggs."

Malfoy glanced at him. They gazed at one another for a minute before Malfoy broke the eye contact. The thought of eggs suddenly sprung something to mind. Harry didn't know why it happened, but he suddenly thought of the fact that both he and Malfoy had no siblings. They were both the only heirs to their family. Knowing the Malfoys and how they wanted to protect their pureblood ways, he expected that Malfoy would've had a pretty large family to keep it going. Swallowing, Harry decided it best not to think about that or families in general.

The swamp was thick and muddy. They had to charm their shoes so as not to sink when walking. They walked through the hanging trees keeping an eye out for anything. Harry let Malfoy lead since the blond knew more about the creature. Malfoy moved a branch out of his face but failed to warn him. The branch sideswiped him on the neck.

"Hey!" Harry exclaimed.

Malfoy turned and then smirked. "Sorry."

"You don't sound sorry at all," Harry said, glaring.

By the time they had gotten through part of the swamp they were sweaty and miserable. Malfoy's bangs were plastered to him. Strangely, Harry found that alluring. Suddenly, Malfoy held out his hand to stop him. He gestured to the area in front of him. They ducked down by a bush. Harry saw a strange tall clump of vines in between two trees.

"What are we looking at?" Harry asked quietly.

"That's a nest," Malfoy said.

Harry turned to him abruptly. "A nest? Didn't you say they're more dangerous when they're guarding eggs?"

Malfoy's lips curled upward. "You scared, Potter?"

Harry clenched his jaw. "Considering our luck so far, I wouldn't be smiling if I were you. We could be walking into a death trap."

"Well at least Voldemort wouldn't get your body then," Malfoy drawled.

Harry whacked him hard in his arm. That only seemed to further amuse him.

"Fine. You want to die so bad, why don't you be bait."

Malfoy snorted. "It's best to take them by surprise. If you challenge it directly, you don't really stand a chance. I'll just get close enough to cast a harmless spell on one of the eggs to make it float. When the egg is disturbed it will glow red, which should alert the mother."

"Great," Harry muttered.

"When you see the mother coming trap her. Simple as that."

"It's never that simple," Harry retorted. "Remember the last incident with the crazy plant? It impaled you."

"So long as I don't get too close to the nest I'll have the advantage. If you're far enough away, you can use hexes to deter them from getting close. So keep your eyes open, Potter."

Harry watched him crouch down and approach a tree diagonal to them. Malfoy ducked behind it and peered at the nest which was about twenty feet away. The blond murmured his spell and Harry saw one of the eggs begin to float. They both waited silently holding their breaths. Malfoy turned to peer around the tree, watching it. Harry's eyes latched onto the moving shape coming down from the tree that Malfoy was in. His heart abruptly skipped a beat.

Harry shouted a spell, causing Malfoy to whip his head back toward him. The snake hissed loudly with its jaws opening as Malfoy stared up at it in shock and fear. He put his hands up over his face to protect himself and the serpent's jaws latched onto his arm.

"Draco!" Harry exclaimed.

The blond cried out in pain as the serpent began lifting him up by his impaled arm. Harry knew if the serpent dragged him into the tree, it would squeeze him to death. Harry ran as fast as he could toward them. He wouldn't get there in time so the only thing he could think to do was endanger the eggs. Harry shouted a spell at them and all the eggs floated toward him, surrounding him. The serpent's eyes narrowed. Its wings stuck out behind it but it didn't let go of Malfoy.

"_Drop him_," Harry hissed.

The Occamy serpent's head lifted. It released its grip on Malfoy and instantly began slithering over to him. The serpent stood in front of him. It was at least 7 feet tall. It stared down at him with large silver eyes. Its wings jutted out in front of him as if trying to intimidate him.

"_You understand me_," Harry hissed. "_We mean no harm. We need your help._"

The serpent's head tilted but its gaze never wavered from him. Harry then floated the eggs back into their nest. The Occamy watched and didn't turn away from its eggs until they were all safely back in their nest. Then it turned back to Harry, looming over him.

Draco made a move as if he was going to try to help. Harry gestured for him to stay where he was. The blond knelt there, clutching his arm.

"_I need your help reading Draconian_," Harry hissed to the serpent. _"We were never going to harm your eggs. We were just trying to get your attention."_

Harry was starting to wonder if the serpent even knew what he was saying. It hadn't responded at all. Obviously the serpent wasn't going to trust him after endangering the eggs. It stared at Harry unmoving. Harry glanced over at Malfoy who was still clutching his arm and breathing heavily. He locked eyes with Harry. Suddenly in an instant the serpent wrapped its body around him. Harry gasped as he felt the smooth warm, scaly body surround him.

"Harry!" Malfoy shouted.

The serpent's eyes bore into his. Harry was mesmerized by its gaze. He couldn't even fight to get his wand. Strangely, he wasn't being squeezed too tightly. At least not yet. The strange bright silver eyes bored into his. Harry stared unblinking. The serpent's eyes seemed to glow so much that they appeared ethereal. Harry was so fascinated by it he barely registered Malfoy's frantic screams in the background. His body was suddenly released and dropped to the ground. Malfoy was pointing his wand at the serpent despite his bleeding arm.

"I'm fine. Don't shoot at it," Harry said, shutting his eyes and rubbing at them. They felt a bit itchy.

Harry could hear the serpent slithering off and then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you all right?" Malfoy asked.

"Yeah. Just a bit dazed," Harry said. "It was probably just giving me a warning."

Malfoy helped him stand and Harry opened his eyes. The blond gasped loudly. Harry gazed at him and saw that Malfoy was squinting his eyes in wonder.

"What?"

"Your eyes are silver."  
>Harry stared at him curiously. He blinked a few times. The itchiness was finally wearing off.<p>

"They're back to normal now. What the hell was that?"

"I don't know. I think maybe it was hypnotizing me so I couldn't fight back. At least it didn't strangle me."

Malfoy snorted. "Yeah. That's great."  
>Harry glared. "Well I wonder whose bright idea it was to float one of the eggs above the nest."<p>

"Whatever. Let's just get out of here. We can try again tomorrow, hopefully with one that's not protecting a nest."

The two of them rode back to the Inn. Harry was feeling exhausted. Yawning, they both ordered dinner and brought it up to their room. They sat on the couch and placed their plates on the table in front of them. As they were eating, Harry decided to pull out the journal again. Maybe if enough of the words were similar to Parseltongue he could get the gist of it. He opened it. A piece of chicken fell out of his mouth.

Malfoy watched it fall and then gave him an amused but disgusted look. "You're worse than Crabbe and Goyle."

"I can read it."

"Whaff?!" Mafoy asked with a mouthful of food.

Harry glanced at him and wrinkled his nose. "Really? Like that's any better."

Malfoy swallowed. "What do you mean you can read it?"

"I mean I can just read it," Harry said, flipping the pages. "The serpent must have helped me after all."

"Great! So we don't have to deal with any more serpents and you can translate the journal."

Harry gave him a look. "Yeah, while you're sitting on your ass doing nothing."

"Hey I can go find a strong container for the flames."

Harry shrugged. "Fine. But I'll start it tomorrow. I'm too tired tonight."

He leaned back against the couch. The fireplace was going, sending a soft warm breeze into the room. For a few minutes it was silent. Harry was about to close his eyes.

"If you want to relax, there's a wicked thing the couch can do."

Harry turned to him. "What?"

Malfoy waved his wand and the couch expanded and began to lean backwards. As it did so the ceiling began to move apart revealing the sky and all the stars. A cool breeze floated in mixing with the warmth of the fireplace. It created a perfect temperature with a nice breath of fresh air. Malfoy turned out the lights so they were lying in the dark staring up at the night sky. Harry stretched his arms over his head, relishing in the soft breeze. Turning, he saw Malfoy lying beside him looking just as content.

"How's the arm?"

"It's fine," he said, shrugging. "Nothing I can't handle."

"I find it amusing that every time we go with your plan you end up getting hurt."

Malfoy slowly turned his head giving him an annoyed look. "Hilarious."

Harry smiled. "Well nobody died. That's always a plus."

"Yeah, great. Everyone else worries about getting assignments done on time. We worry about coming back from them," Malfoy said with a snort. "But that's why they pay us the big bucks."

"It's a shame we're not getting paid for this. Too bad they don't also write books on dragons or other creatures. I bet it'd be worth a lot of money," Harry said.

Malfoy smirked. "Who says we can't make a profit?"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"If we get enough flame from the dragon, we can give the rest of it to Dimitri. I'm sure it will be useful in his healing potions or whatever other potions he's creating from plant serum and such."

"That's true," Harry said. "Of course that's only if we survive encountering one."

Malfoy made a sound in the back of his throat as if agreeing. They fell into a brief silence.

"Can I ask you something?"

Harry turned. "Sure."

"What was it like…you know….fighting Voldemort? Being the hero and everything?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Great. Everyone looks at you like you've got a third eye, all the bad guys out there want to kill you, and fighting Voldemort is always a blast," he drawled.

"How did you manage to find all his whatcha-call-its?"

"Horcruxes?" Harry offered. Malfoy nodded. "Dumb luck mostly. I could also tap into Voldemort's mind, but it was dangerous to do because I could alert him of my location."

"Were you ever scared?" Malfoy asked curiously.

"Of course," Harry said. "But Voldemort killed my family and plenty of other people's so I was determined to stop him. I know that if he were to capture me now he'd really make me suffer. Before he would underestimate me and really didn't see a reason to torture me whenever he captured me, but now…now I've ruined all his plans. Even though he's weak, it terrifies me that he might get a hold of my body somehow, to become me. He doesn't deserve a second chance at life. Besides, he would make all the people I care about suffer," he added quietly.

Malfoy was silent for a few minutes. "Yeah…he is terrifying. The few times I ever had to be in his presence were the worst. But….growing up with my family isn't much better."

Harry turned to him. Malfoy was staring up at the sky. "What do you mean?"

"Having parents who control your every move, who spy on you and force you do everything their way is like having someone take over your body. You're never allowed to do anything you may like. You have to force yourself to like what they like. So you're never free. Plus my father could be quite terrifying at times when he got pissed off. He'd hex me now and again and threaten to disown me if I screwed up or made a fool of the family."

Harry stared at him sadly. "Yeah…that sounds awful. But you didn't screw up anything. I mean you got good grades, right? And you got on a Quidditch team and everything."

"That's not what they mean by screwing up, exactly," Malfoy drawled. "They didn't really care about the trivial things at Hogwarts. Of course my father wanted me to show you up once he found out you were on the Quidditch team. They didn't just control my hobbies and school life, they controlled…everything."

Malfoy fell into silence for a minute. Harry was afraid to say anything for fear that he would stop sharing.

"Like what?" he asked finally.

Shrugging uncomfortably, Malfoy hesitated. "After I turned thirteen, that winter I came home for Christmas. My father handed me a butterbeer. Said I was becoming a man and that I was old enough to start making bigger decisions. Little did I know that he put Veritaserum in it."

Harry's eyebrows rose up to his hairline. "Are you serious? Why?"

Malfoy adjusted his position and sighed. "Because he wanted to make sure that I wasn't doing anything I shouldn't. Whether it be failing at school or…," he hesitated, "or kissing girls."

"Wait, your father slipped Veritaserum in your drink because he was worried you'd have sex too young?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Not exactly. I mean…some of my friends were already making out with girls at that age, but there wasn't really anyone I was interested in then. But I wasn't ever allowed to be intimate in any way."

"You mean…your parents wanted you to stay a virgin? Like until marriage kind of thing?" Harry asked, flushing a little.

"Not kind of, exactly that."

"Really? They don't strike me as the religious type."

"It wasn't for religious purposes," Malfoy drawled. "They wanted me to stay pure because they had already decided who I was going to marry."

Harry blinked. "Who?"

Sighing, Malfoy glanced at him briefly before staring back up at the sky. "Her name is Daphne Greengrass. Her family is one of the few remaining purebloods. My parents want to keep our blood pure especially with how few purebloods are left. Plus I think my father likes having another powerful wealthy family to be close to. According to my mother, they set this all up when me and Daphne were just kids. My parents told me about her when I turned 13 and said that I wasn't allowed to date anyone else. At that time I didn't care because I was so young, but then by like 16 I was starting to wonder if I was going to be okay with it. But then with the whole Dark Lord thing and the war…it kind of slipped my mind. I had more pressing things to worry about, like not dying," he drawled.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. So…I still don't understand why you have to save yourself for marriage."

"It's the agreement they made," he said quietly. "In order to show respect to their family and vice versa, and with the whole pureblood agreement, they agreed that we would save ourselves for each other and then marry and unite our families in some weird holy ritualistic sense."

Malfoy turned to him slowly. "That's what the vow is."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Wait, the Unbreakable Vow is…," he trailed off. His heart skipped a beat and he felt his entire body freeze.

"Yeah…the Unbreakable Vow is that I have to marry her on my 20th birthday to unite our families and continue the pureblood line and the pureblood ways," he said bitterly. "It forces me to marry into her family and start working for her father, who's a very wealthy man. He owns a store where he sells legal things but a lot of his more rare collections can be helpful for dark rituals. Since he has a legitimate business though, the Ministry wouldn't see them as a threat."

Harry swallowed thickly. If they didn't break the Vow, not only would Malfoy be forced back to his family but they wouldn't be able to stay together. They would most likely never see one another again.

"So…we have a year?" Harry asked quietly.

Malfoy nodded. "I turn 19 in a couple months, in June. Then on my 20th birthday next June I'm supposed to marry her."

"Why so young?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Because it seemed like as good of time as any. Honestly they could've made it for right after graduation at Hogwarts but they decided that 20 was the perfect year since I would no longer be a teenager. They consider that to be the real age of adulthood."

"So…can I ask…," Harry trailed off as Malfoy turned to him. "Are you still…?"

"A virgin?" Malfoy asked, snorting. "Well I knew about the agreement. And I knew my parents would sneak Veritaserum in my drink every year until graduation to make sure I wasn't doing anything I shouldn't. I would get severely punished if I did. And they would erase my memories so that Daphne's family would never find out. My father threatened to take my inheritance and take me off the Quidditch team at Hogwarts if I didn't do everything they wanted me to. I didn't know about the vow. I never thought that I had no choice. They always made it sound as if I did and that if I chose not to follow in their footsteps I would be disowned. Since the Unbreakable Vow can only contain one solemn vow they couldn't force me to stay a virgin, but...I was afraid of my parents, especially my father. So I listened to them. I was obedient throughout school and honestly there wasn't anyone I really liked in school."

"Didn't you say you experimented?" Harry asked curiously.

"Yeah, just snogging. I took a couple risks here and there, but I made sure not to do anything more. Then when the war ended and I graduated I started feeling as though I didn't want the kind of life they did. So after the fight with my mother I decided that I would tell her I wanted to break away. There was a girl at the first job I interviewed with who I could tell really liked me. I was thinking about having sex with her with the thought that if I wasn't pure anymore my mother would hopefully be fine with me not marrying Daphne."

"Oh," Harry said, glancing away out of embarrassment. "Did you?"

"I was planning on it. I went to tell my mother that I didn't want to do the agreement, that I had someone else I was in love with. That's when she told me about the vow. And she threatened me that if I had done anything with this other girl that she would erase my memories after the ceremony. Obviously she can't use magic right now and neither can my father. So while I'm safe from their wrath, I'm still not safe from the vow. I then realized that it would be pointless to sleep with someone I don't like just to spite them when the vow gives me no choice anyway."

Harry bit his lip. "True, but…if your parents found out about us, that would be ten times worse."

Malfoy snorted. "I know. But either way no matter who I sleep with or don't sleep with, they would erase my memories of any infidelities and still force me to marry her so I might as well do what I want."

Harry was silent for a minute. "Your family's insane."

"Yeah, that's an understatement," Malfoy drawled.

Harry turned to gaze at him. "You should be able to marry who you want or to do whatever you want in life. It's your life after all."

Malfoy gazed back. There was a sad look in his eyes that made Harry's heart clench. "Yeah. Try telling them that."

Harry propped his head up on his hand, resting his elbow on the couch. "Don't worry. We'll break the vow."

Malfoy lips curled upward slightly. "I hope so."

Harry stared at him for a second, hesitating. "So you are a virgin still?"

Malfoy smirked. "Why do you want to know?"

"There's nothing wrong with it. It's rather impressive actually. I would've waited until marriage too."

Malfoy turned to lie on his side still facing him. "So why didn't you?"

It was hard to keep his gaze, but he did. "Well, er…Ginny was a bit curious and I think that she was also feeling like the war changed me, that we weren't as close as before the war."

Malfoy stared at him silently.

"It wasn't a bad experience, but looking back on it now I don't think I was completely ready for it. And considering how things ended between us I'm not sure that we should've."

Malfoy shrugged. "It doesn't matter. It's not like you were using her. She was the one who initiated it."

"Yeah, I know. I just feel bad. She's a really sweet girl, really great. So I feel bad that I got her hopes up and then things fell apart."

"Things always fall apart. She wasn't ever going to get it right on the first try," Malfoy said.

Harry looked taken aback. Then he smiled.

"What?"

"You know something, Draco, you're much wiser than you appear."

The blond's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. Malfoy smirked widely at him.

"What? It wasn't _that_ big of a compliment," Harry said with a roll of his eyes.

"That's not what surprised me," he said with a grin. "You called me by my first name."

Harry blinked in surprise. He hadn't even noticed.

"I've called you by your first name before."

"Rarely. It's just strange," Malfoy said.  
>"Well you rarely call me by my first name."<p>

"Fine, _Harry_. How's that?"

Wrinkling his nose, he shrugged. "Strange."

Malfoy snorted. "Well don't say I didn't try."

They both fell into a comfortable silence. Harry's heart was racing. Draco had never opened up so much before. A part of him wished he hadn't known how bad the vow was, but now that he did know he was much more determined to break it. The fact that Draco was still a virgin also made him respect the blond that much more. Granted, his parents practically forced him, but Draco could've slept with anyone after he broke away, but he didn't want to sleep with someone he didn't care about. That said a lot about him. He had a good heart.

"Don't go getting a big head because you think you're more experienced than I am," Draco said, raising an eyebrow. "I may not have had intercourse with anyone yet, but I've done everything else."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "With guys and girls?"

Draco smirked. "Yeah. I may not have had sex with the girl who interviewed me but that doesn't mean we didn't do other things."

"I thought you didn't like her."

"She was fine. That was more of a fling and to spite my parents. Back at school with all the stress and teenage hormones and Blake making moves on me –"

"Blake? Wait, you were with Blake?"

"Is that a problem?" Draco drawled in amusement.

Harry opened his mouth and then shut it. He didn't know why he was surprised.

"Like…sexually or…?"

"Are you jealous?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Shut-up and answer the question."

Draco laughed. "Wow, I never expected the famous Harry Potter to be jealous of anybody."

"I'm not jealous. I'm just curious."

Draco hesitated for what seemed like a frustratingly long time before he answered. "No, I wasn't sexual with Blake. We just made out and groped. This was still during school and I told him my parents would kill me if I did anything sexual."

"Oh, so then all your experimentation was after school."

"That was the only time I had any freedom, so yes."

Harry paused. "Anyone serious?"

"Why are you asking me these questions?" Draco asked with a grin. "Why does that matter?"

"Well…I want to know if you've ever been in a serious relationship before."

"Oh, I see," Draco said, eyeing him. "You want to know if I'm relationship material."

"I just want to know how hard I'm going to have to work in this relationship," Harry teased.

"Oh, right," Draco drawled, "because you've been the only one doing the work."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Shut-up. You know everyone I've been with."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Really? Just Ginny?"

"Yeah. Why are you surprised?"

Draco shrugged. "I'm not. I just thought girls would be swooning all over you after you saved the world again."

"Well, yeah, but that's not exactly what I'm looking for. So who was your most serious relationship?"

Draco sighed. "Fine. Let's get this conversation over with. There was a guy I met when I first started this job. He was data analyzing, like me. And we eventually hit it off. We were together for a couple months. And yes, in case you're wondering, we did everything but intercourse," he said as Harry flushed in embarrassment. "He was nice and all but I just couldn't see it going on forever. Plus, if I was going to defy my parents and have sex with someone I wanted it to be someone I was really sure about. So I told him I was having a bunch of family problems and kind of broke it off. It made it easier when I switched to the field."

"So that's the real reason you switched, isn't it?" Harry teased him.

"No," Draco snorted. "We left it on good terms. The money was what motivated me most."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Fine. So…does he still work there?"

"Yes. I've seen him only once since that time."

Harry nodded. He wanted to question him more about this guy, like who he was and what he looked like, but he felt too embarrassed to do it. Draco would definitely consider him jealous if he did that. Plus he had already asked so many questions he wasn't sure how much more Draco could take.

"So why did you decide to tell me the vow now?"

Draco shrugged. "I thought it was time. Plus after today when I thought you were going to die I figured I should tell you just in case we don't survive this task."

"Oh, thanks," Harry said. "So it's like you're fulfilling my death wish."

Draco smirked and put his hands behind his head. "Something like that."

Harry lifted his head up, staring at him curiously. "All right. Then how about showing me your tattoo."

"You already got your death wish."

"Come on, Draco, you can't hide it from me forever."

"Yes, I can, Harry. I can do whatever I want. Hmm…it's still strange calling you Harry."

"I know," Harry said with a smile. "But get used to it."

Malfoy snorted in response. They both turned back to look up at the sky. Harry stretched his arms up over his head.

"This is so relaxing. I don't want to move."

"Who says you have to?" Draco asked, smirking. "This couch is big enough for the both of us."

Harry turned to look at him. The moonlight was shining down upon them. It touched Draco's hair making it seem ethereal in the light. He didn't even realize that they had been staring at one another deeply until Draco turned over and then scooted closer to him. Harry felt his heart skip a beat in excitement as Draco wrapped a hand around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. Draco's lips were so warm and soft. Every time their lips caressed his stomach fluttered. They broke apart for a split second and Draco adjusted his position, rolling on top of him. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck as they kissed passionately. Draco tilted his head as he deepened the kiss.

When they broke apart again, Harry opened his eyes. Draco's eyes opened as well and he saw Harry staring at him.

"Would you ever want to have sex with me?" Harry blurted out. His entire face flushed after the question escaped his lips.

Both of Draco's eyebrows rose. "Is that a trick question?"

"Er, no."

"Wait, so first you want sex off the table because you're worried that I'm a sex addict, based on Pansy's stupid rumors, and now you're worried that I don't want to have sex with you?"

"No, it's not – I just mean with the vow and everything," Harry said, glancing away briefly. "I mean, I understand if you don't want to go all the way, like you've done before."

"I only did that before because the chemistry that I initially had with them went away after a while. I didn't want my first real time to be with someone who I wasn't, you know, and why are you smiling?"

"I think it's sweet," he said. "You want your first time to be special."

"I'm _not_ a girl, Harry."

"I clearly see that," he said, glancing at the blond's flat chest.

Draco snorted. "Well stop acting like I'm asking for rose petals on the bed or something."

Harry laughed. "We could do that."

Draco's smile turned to one of surprise. The blond was still on top of him. Draco stared at him, examining his face.

"Really?" Draco drawled in a teasing tone.

Harry flushed. "I didn't mean I was ready tonight."

Draco smirked. "Does that mean you're almost ready?"

Harry shrugged and then gave him a slight smile. "Maybe."

The smirk on Draco's face morphed into an expression full of desire. He leaned down to capture Harry's lips in a heated kiss. Harry wrapped his arms tightly around Draco's back. The blond adjusted his position so that his arms were beneath him. Draco began kissing him more passionately, causing his head to tilt upward. Their lips made a sound everytime they opened and closed together. Draco moved a hand up to his cheek, touching his jaw. He slipped a tongue inside his mouth and Harry immediately slid his tongue up against his.

Harry could feel the heat in his groin building. Even though a part of him was nervous about having sex with a guy, every time they kissed and touched he wanted more. Draco's hand moved down his body, across his side and to his hip. His fingers slipped beneath the jeans to caress his hip before sliding down to the crevice of his pubic bone. Harry made a sound in the back of his throat. His grip around Draco tightened. Instead of going further, Draco's fingers slipped out from beneath the material and unbuttoned his jeans. Their kiss broke momentarily as Draco pulled on his jeans to slide them off his hips.

To his surprise, Draco took off his own jeans and shirt and then bent down to raise Harry's shirt up. The blond pressed his lips to Harry's stomach. As his shirt was pulled up inch by inch Draco trailed his lips up. A wave of desire struck him. Harry's hands, which had moved to his side when Draco undressed, clenched in response. Draco kissed Harry's toned abdomen before moving up to his chest. Draco kissed his sternum and raised his shirt higher. It was bunched up to his neck. Draco glanced at him and gave him a sultry smirk before he kissed his neck. Harry took in a shaky breath. Draco's lips trailed back down and this time he went over to one of Harry's nipples and brushed his lips across it. Harry felt his erection twitch in response. He breathed out heavily, feeling his desire grow more intense. Draco kissed his nipple lightly before closing his lips around it. He gently but passionately opened and closed his lips around Harry's nipple, massaging it. Harry groaned softly as his hands clenched again.

Draco's hand began to trail down his body even as his mouth still massaged Harry's nipple. His fingers brushed across Harry's boxers and toward his crotch. Harry's nails dug into the couch when Draco rubbed his thumb up and down his erection. Harry's back arched and his head tilted back. The pleasure was so intense he could barely think straight. Draco's thumb moved to the tip of penis and he began to rub the tip. Harry gasped, his head tilting backward. His thigh muscles tensed as he felt his orgasm building. Harry instantly wrapped his arms around Draco again, bringing the blond back up to his lips. Harry opened his mouth around Draco's and pushed his tongue inside. Draco groaned in the back of his throat. The blond's fingers were still roving up and down his penis. Harry's hands trailed down Draco's bare back until he reached his boxers.

Harry moaned as Draco's fingers trailed down to the tip of his penis again and massaged back and forth. In response, Harry's fingers slipped beneath Draco's boxers and trailed down across his rear. Draco groaned through their kiss, moving his tongue around inside his mouth. Harry caressed Draco's rear but as Draco's fingers pushed on his erection, causing an intense wave of pleasure, Harry's fingers dipped down past his rear and touched his sensitive sacs. Draco moaned, breaking the kiss as he breathed out heavily just as Harry's fingers rubbed against his sac. Draco pushed their lips back together forcefully, increasing his pace as he rubbed up and down Harry's penis with more determination.

Harry groaned. His mouth opened within their kiss as he did so and Draco just slipped his tongue inside again. It was strange to feel another boy's groin without the fabric in the way. As Harry's fingers trailed along the sac, squeezing it gently, Draco moaned loudly. He pulled away for a split second to adjust his position. He spread Harry's legs out around him and then started leaning back on top of him. Harry felt Draco's hand moved and he heard the sound of fabric. His fingers moved down Draco's back when the blond was repositioned on top of him. He realized that Draco had taken his boxers off. The blond crushed their lips together and then pushed their erections together. Harry could feel Draco's erection much more clearly without the boxers. If Draco wasn't on top of him, he could finally see the tattoo.

The second Draco thrust his erection against his, however, Harry completely forgot about the tattoo. He groaned breathlessly as Draco rubbed roughly again and again. His orgasm was nearly there. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's back again and began moving his hips in rhythm. Draco groaned loudly and grabbed the back of his thigh. He lifted Harry's legs up a bit, spreading his legs a bit wider. He also lifted Harry's hips a bit. Then Harry gasped when he felt Draco's erection right up against his entrance. Harry still had his boxers on but he could clearly feel as Draco rubbed the tip of his erection against his entrance. Draco began thrusting his hips in motion and Harry groaned. His body began moving back and forth each time Draco thrust. The blond had a strong grip on the back of his thighs, holding his hips in that position.

Harry's head tilted back. He could feel the erection pushing against his entrance, rubbing back and forth. He could feel the wet substance through his boxers. Draco groaned loudly, crushing their lips back together. The pleasure began building so fast. Harry moaned and moved his hips as Draco thrust. Draco lifted his hips higher and had Harry wrap his legs around his waist. He placed both his hands on either side of Harry's head and then he began thrusting roughly, pushing the head of his penis against his entrance over and over. While it didn't penetrate, since it couldn't through the material, Harry could feel it pressing against it over and over. He gasped, moaning as his head tilted back. He was so close now. Harry wanted Draco to keep going, he wanted him to pull down his boxers and enter him. Draco thrust against him, pushing their bodies together. Harry's legs tightened around him. Draco's moaning became louder and he became closer. Harry's mouth parted as he felt his orgasm start. Draco trailed his hands behind him and grabbed Harry's rear firmly as he thrust several more times roughly, pushing his erection right up against his entrance.

Harry's orgasm hit him and he felt it spilling out just as Draco groaned and released his. He could feel Draco's wet orgasm seeping through his boxers. Harry's breathing was rapid and his head was still tilted back. The pleasure was so intense he hadn't wanted it to stop. It took him a moment to realize that he wanted to have sex with Draco, badly. The thought surprised him even as he lay trying to catch his breath. Draco was also breathing heavily. The blond released his grip on Harry's rear, allowing his legs to unwind and fall back down. Then Draco slowly lifted himself off of him and lay down next to him.

Harry's heart was racing. It took him a few minutes to calm down. It was then Harry realized that Draco had taken off his boxers. He turned to gaze at the blond but he had already slipped his boxers back on.

"Really?" Harry asked.

Draco glanced at him and saw where he was looking. He smirked. "You've got to be faster than that."

Harry rolled his eyes. "You're such a tease."

Draco snickered. "Maybe next time. If you're fast enough."

The blond grinned and then got up to go the bathroom. Harry bent down toward his jeans to get his wand. He waved a cleaning spell over him and then lay back down. He decided it was fine to sleep in his boxers. Draco came back a few minutes later and lay back down on the couch.

Harry sighed. "I guess we should get in our beds, huh?"

Draco snorted. "Well it would be more comfortable."

Grumbling, Harry forced himself to get up and stumble over to his bed. Draco watched in amusement. They both lay down in their respective beds.

"Night," Harry said.

Draco turned. "Night."

The blond then pulled the sheet over most of his body and turned on his side. Harry stared at him for several long minutes. He thought about how much he had wanted Draco to go all the way just a minute ago. The desire was still there, although not as strong now. He wasn't just attracted to Draco. He knew that now. This was much more than that. They had to break the vow no matter what. They just had to.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**idreamofdrarry**: Thanks! I'm so sorry this took so long to update! Studying sucks! I promise that even if some chapters take longer, it won't be TOO long before I update. I'm still updating regularly. Tehehehe, yes much more to come as seen in this chapter. Oh yes, Draco is still stubborn regardless, even though he has his sensitive moments. I promise to update asap!

**StubbornBlonde**: Lol! Yep! And more sexytimes to come, as you can tell! I gave you a little taste again in this chapter, muahaha! I'm such a tease! =) I promise not to take as long for the next chapter!

**HPmeghan7474**: Oh yes, sexual tension galore! Lol! I'm glad you like my depiction of Draco, yay! He's still going to be stubborn, but you get to see his other sides too! And yes, teasing is always fun. It's a must, especially with these two cuties. I promise to update asap!

**DeiStarr**: Yay! I hope you loved this chapter just as much as the last. I'm sorry it took longer to update this one. Boo for studying! Don't worry, I'm still updating on a regular basis. Some chapters just might take a little longer than others. SORRY! I'll try not to let it happen again. Oh yes, you will learn more about the Onyx Dragon next chapter. =) I promise to update asap!

**Ylterces A:** Awww, thanks so much! I'm so glad you love this story, YAY! I'm so glad you think they're in character. I feel like it's sometimes hard to keep Draco in character because he's not portrayed as a loving character, but I figure he's got his sensitive sides, as I've shown now and again. Don't get me wrong, he's still Draco and still stubborn. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! =) I will update asap!

**Guest**: Awww, thanks! Yay! I'm so glad you liked the last chapter! I really hope this one was just as good! =) Oh good, I'm so glad that you don't always have to go back and reread. That's also why I try and update on a regular basis. That way no one will forget what's been going on. Sorry this one took a little longer than expected. I'll try not to let that happen again, lol! Awww, thank you! I'm so glad you like it. Lol! Yes, I think we all suffer from "procrastion-ius" a lot of the time. Must be a common illness. Tehehe! I will update asap!


	16. The Dragon's Lair

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note: ****SO SORRY it took longer than expected! I try to keep it within 2 weeks. If you check out my PROFILE I will let you know when something gets delayed and how long it might take to get it out. I promise I'm still updating regularly, just some updates might be longer than others. Thanks again for being patient and enjoy! **

**Chapter 15: The Dragon's Lair**

A couple weeks passed as Harry attempted to read the journal and figure out the important notes while Draco spent time searching for a powerful container. Harry woke up to the sound of something tapping on the window. He yawned and got out of bed. There was a secure envelope flapping its wings outside the window so Harry opened the window and let it in. The envelope landed, folded its wings, and then opened. Out came a familiar red envelope. Harry's eyes widened and before he could open his mouth to warn a sleeping Draco, the Howler exploded.

"HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME THAT YOU AND MALFOY WERE LIVING TOGETHER!" Ron's voice echoed.

Draco shot up in bed, his hair all in disarray. He blinked his bleary eyes over to Harry who was looking guilty.

"HOW COULD YOU HIDE YET ANOTHER THING FROM ME?! THAT IS REALLY BIG DEAL! I KNOW YOU'RE IN DANGER BUT WHY DO YOU BOTH HAVE TO LIVE THERE?! WHY CAN'T MALFOY JUST GO LIVE AT MALFOY MANOR WITH HIS PARENTS!? THAT'S JUST WEIRD! YOU BETTER NOT BE HIDING ANYTHING ELSE, HARRY! AND THAT BETTER NOT BE THE REASON YOU DIDN'T WANT ME TO COME OVER TO GRIMMAULD PLACE OR I'LL HEX YOU WITH A PIMPLE CURSE THAT WILL LAST FOR WEEKS!"

The Howler then erupted into flames and vanished. Draco was staring at Harry who had trouble meeting his gaze. Draco looked ridiculous with his hair sticking up. He just stared at Harry.

"What? I had to tell him everything. He gets upset when I keep him in the dark."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "So you told him we're dating?"

"Er…," Harry glanced down.

Draco smirked. "That's what I thought. Besides, I thought you already told him when you went over to his place."

"I know," Harry said, sighing. "I was going to but I got caught up explaining the whole Voldemort situation. It kind of slipped my mind."

"So when are you going to break the news about us?" Draco asked.

"One thing at a time. I just need to let him cool off a bit again," Harry argued. "I don't want Ron's head to explode."

"That's a thought," Draco said with a smirk.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Clearly you just want to torture him."

Draco snorted. "True, but if you wait too long, he'll be even more pissed, especially if he finds out the hard way."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said, rubbing his eyes. "It's too early in the morning for this."

Draco yawned and stood up. "I need food."

"Good idea," Harry said, yawning.

"What do you want?"

"Anything is fine," Harry said.

Draco waved his wand to get dressed and then he went downstairs. Harry stretched his arms and waved his wand to freshen his breath. He flipped through the first few pages of the journal. It wasn't just about dragons, it was combined with other things, namely his deepest thoughts and secrets. Harry read about how he discovered that his Animagus form was a dragon. He was so caught up in reading he didn't notice Draco return until the blond placed food in front of him.

Harry blinked and gazed up at him. "Oh, thanks."

Draco smirked. "Is it that good?"

"It's interesting."

"Anything useful?"

"Not yet."

They both ate in relatively comfortable silence. Harry glanced over at Draco now and again. He couldn't really see the worry on Draco's features, but the blond was never one for being an open book. He was quite sure Draco was probably more worried about the Vow than Harry was. It sounded like such an impossible task, but then again so did defeating Voldemort. Harry frowned. That was a terrible example considering Voldemort hadn't been truly defeated yet.

"What?"

Harry turned to Draco and saw the blond looking at him. He probably saw Harry's expression.

"Oh, nothing. There's just a lot to get through. It's not all about dragons."

"Great," Draco muttered. "Well, I'm going to go search for a container that will hopefully be strong enough to contain the dragon's flame."

Harry nodded and watched him leave. He sighed heavily. Things were so complicated between them now. For the next couple hours he read over the journal, noting places where he talked about the Onyx Dragon. There was some interesting information about them. He mentioned seeing them burning nests into the ground when they were ready to lay one egg. That is all they could lay at one time. And their mating cycles were every 7 years. If there was any danger they had to move on and take their time with their nest ritual. Then Harry found something crucial – a charm that the man had invented. It was to be placed on a nesting ground in order to determine how old it was, that way he could determine how long they had left.

_This is perfect! Once we know how old the egg shell is, we will know how long it's been. Once we know that we can determine if it's likely they are at their next nesting migration or the one after that. _

Thankfully the man had been keeping track of the areas that they liked to migrate to. He had determined exactly what sort of climate they preferred and the same thing they discovered – that they love going under mountains. Draco finally came back later in the afternoon. He had returned rather grumpy.

"No luck?" Harry asked.

"No, but I do have a lead on someone with a private collection," he grumbled. "How about you?"

Harry smiled. "I found something."

Draco's expression lightened. "Really? What?"

"Can you get the egg shell?"

Draco retrieved a piece of shell and went over to sit next to him on the couch. Harry flipped to the page with the charm and began to perform it. The egg shell glowed a light yellow hue.

"Yes!" Harry exclaimed.

"What?" Draco asked eagerly. He leaned over toward him.

"This light yellow hue means that it's 10-11 years old. According to his research, they mate every 7 years. So when they go to a new place they seem to prefer trying to stay there for at least that long. They will only leave ahead of schedule if something really dangerous threatens them. Considering how well they are at hiding, they must be at the next migration spot from Australia. That could be here, but we won't know until we check some of the mountains around here."

"What happens if we find another egg shell?"

"Then it's more likely they are at the next migration spot after that. If we don't then that just means we need to figure out where they would go from Australia. There are some migration graphs that he drew so I think we might be able to determine the likeliest areas, based on climate and isolation, of where they would go."

Draco sighed. "All right. I guess we should check out the mountains then."

Harry nodded. They flew to the mountain that was mentioned in the books as being one of the places where one was spotted. The mountain was smaller than the last one they went to.

Harry pushed some moss out of his face as he ducked inside the mountain.

"It looks like a whole bunch of plants have grown over. I don't think anything has lived here in a long time."

Draco opened his mouth to respond and walked into a cobweb. He spit and flayed his arms to get the web out of his face. Harry laughed. Thankfully Draco only glared at him as they entered the mountain.

"What is that smell?" Draco asked covering his nose. He instinctively looked up and Harry snickered again. "Shut up."

"I don't think that's dragon dung. I think that's just the fungus and stuff growing."

"Like that's any better," Draco muttered.

They walked into one of the bigger spaces inside the mountain. All they saw was vines and fungus all around. Using their wands, they stared closely at the ground.

"I don't see signs of a nest, or any egg shells," Harry said. "This is a good thing! If we look at the migration chart in the journal, there might be areas nearby Australia that he notes they would go to."

"What if he's wrong? I mean he's been dead at least a decade."

"Yeah but things wouldn't have changed that drastically in the last decade," Harry said.

Draco shrugged. "Well I guess we should check out the other few mountains in the area just to be sure."

Harry nodded. They both flew off to check the other mountains with no luck. By the time they got back they were both exhausted and hungry. They got food from the Inn and collapsed in bed not too long after that.

In the morning, Harry woke up to find Draco gone. He figured he had gone out to find the container. Harry began piecing together the migration notes from the journal to help determine which areas they would fly off to next. He narrowed it down to three areas: Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. Harry chewed on his lip. They could narrow down which mountains would be big enough and isolated enough for them, but that was still a lot of ground to cover. There had to be a way to narrow it down further.

Later in the afternoon, the door opened and Draco stepped inside. Harry saw a large quartz object in his hand.

"Is that it?" he asked, standing up.

Draco nodded. "Yeah, it's made out of quartz so it should be strong enough. The guy really didn't want to part with it, but I persuaded him."

Harry winced. "I bet it was a lot of money to persuade him."

Draco shrugged. "It will be worth it when we get the flame."

"So you're sure it's strong enough?"

"It should be. Quartz is one of the strongest elements that works well with magic. Anything stronger like diamond for example won't work as well. Diamonds tend to reflect the magic and not absorb as much. This is the best shot we've got."

Harry nodded. "Okay. Well I've also narrowed down their next migration to three areas. I'm trying to narrow it down further but I'm having trouble."

"Let me see," Draco said, sitting down.

Harry sat next to him and explained his chart he made based off the notes. Draco waved his wand in the air and pictures of all three locations came up.

"Wow! This is a neat spell. It's like browsing the Internet," Harry said.

When he turned to Draco he saw the blond had a blank look on his face.

"Er, nevermind," Harry said.

"Anytime you say something muggle I'm just going to ignore you."

They both stared at the images. Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Well, if I had to guess, I'd say the climate in Finland might be closest to what the notes tell us."

Harry nodded. "Okay. So we can check out the highest mountain there next."

"We have the wizard car for several months so that shouldn't be a problem."

"How long of a ride is it?"

Draco waved his wand again. "Twelve hours by wizard car."

Harry winced. "Wow. We should leave pretty early in the morning then."

"Yeah we'll leave by 4."

"At least we have a container now. We're as prepared as we can be. There are some spells in here that I've been trying to learn. There are only two of them, but they're spells he created to interact with the dragons while in human form to try and get them to trust him since even in his dragon form he smelled different to them. It might come in useful, if I can figure out exactly how to do it."

Draco nodded. "Well, you are the famous Harry Potter so you should be able to do it."

Harry glared at him.

"But no pressure," he said, smirking.

"Yeah, sure," Harry retorted.

For the next hour Harry practiced the spells. He wasn't sure if he was doing them correctly and there was no way to tell without a dragon. Draco was examining the container he bought and playing around with some strengthening charms and spells. They both went down to the Inn for an early dinner since they were planning on leaving so early in the morning. After dinner, Harry got up and headed toward the bathroom.

"I'm going to take a shower before bed. Are you going to take a shower?"

A sly smirk passed over Draco's face but he shrugged. "It doesn't matter. You can take one."

After closing the bathroom door, he slipped his boxers off and turned the hot water on. Once it was the perfect temperature, he stepped inside and closed the curtain. He sighed contently as the warm water soothed his muscles. He had left his wand on the bed in the other room so he manually washed his body. A few minutes later as he was washing his hair, the lights suddenly began to dim until he could make out the shadow of the curtain and a soft glow on the other side of it, but no details. Harry blinked twice.

"What the heck?" he whispered.

He stepped into the water, facing the showerhead, as he rinsed his hair off and his face. Just then he heard a rustling sound. He reached up his hands to wipe his face so he could turn around. Before he could turn around he felt a warm arm slip around his torso. Harry began to turn his head and he felt a pair of lips on the back of his neck.

"Draco?" Harry asked in surprise.

His face flushed in embarrassment. He was completely naked. They had touched and rubbed together in their underwear but they hadn't been completely naked together yet. He was grateful Draco had dimmed the lights.

The lips pulled away momentarily. "Expecting someone else?"

"Very funny," Harry said.

His breath hitched when he felt Draco's fingers caressing his chest. Turning around Harry realized he could just make out the shadows of Draco's eyes and face but he couldn't see details.

"You dimmed the lights so I couldn't see your tattoo, didn't you?"

He saw Draco's lips move to form a smile. "Maybe."

Draco grabbed Harry's face and pulled him in for a kiss. The water fell over both of them as Draco pushed his body against Harry's, moving them both backward. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck. Draco's hands caressed his back up to his neck and then down. His fingers caressed his rear, squeezing it gently. Harry felt their naked bodies touch and their arousals meet. Feeling both of their erections together without any cloth sent tingles up his spine. They both groaned softly. Draco pushed against Harry more firmly and spread his legs around each of Harry's before thrusting their arousals together. Harry moaned in pleasure. Draco's lips trailed down his neck and Harry rested his head back against the shower wall.

Draco groaned and gripped Harry's rear tightly as he rubbed their erections back and forth. The water made Draco's skin feel even smoother than normal. Harry's hands trailed up and down his back as their lips came together again. Draco slipped his tongue in his mouth and thrust against him with more determination. Harry's lips parted beneath his as he groaned.

Draco pushed against him again. The feeling was much more intense than just in their underwear. Harry could feel the heat from Draco's groin as well as the throbbing as his erection rubbed against his. The blond was definitely a good size, probably a bit bigger than he was, at least in length. Harry's tongue slid against Draco's as the blond's fingers dug deeper into his rear. The blond pushed Harry's pelvis with the motion of his thrusts. Their lips detached and Harry released a breathless moan. Draco rested his body heavily against his and practically hugged him. As he gripped Harry's rear and thrust against him, the blond leaned his face beside him. Their cheeks were resting against one another's. Harry's fingers dug into Draco's back as he felt his erection twitch.

He was getting close to release. Draco groaned and adjusted his position. Harry felt Draco's legs against his and the blond used his knee to spread Harry's legs farther apart. Harry's breath hitched in his throat. Was Draco planning on going all the way? He had told Draco recently that he might be ready soon, but he wasn't sure he was ready yet. Draco adjusted his position again and rubbed the heads of their erections together. Harry's lips parted. He felt Draco's fingers on his rear begin to lower until the blond hands was gripping both the bottom of his rear and top of his thighs. Draco moved one of his hands up higher and Harry felt his thumb at the crease of his coccyx. The blond rubbed down the crease and stopped at his entrance. He rubbed the hole with his thumb and Harry groaned, feeling his erection pulse even as Draco continued to rub against him.

Draco moaned loudly. He was getting close to release too. Suddenly one of Draco's fingers pushed inside of him. Harry had no warning and he felt his muscles tense at first at the intrusion. The finger was already inside by the time he knew what was happening. Draco began pushing his finger in and out and Harry felt his legs tremble. His eyes shut and his head tilted back more. He groaned breathlessly and his mouth parted. The feeling was so intense. He was feeling pleasure in his groin and now there was pleasure building from the finger inside of him. It was so intense he could barely think straight. Harry moaned as he felt his release coming.

Draco increased his pace with his thrusting against him. As they both moaned loudly, Harry trailed his fingers to Draco's rear. Without thinking, he pushed his finger inside the blond. Draco let out a cry of pleasure. Draco shoved him hard up against the wall, pulled his finger out and gripped his rear as he rubbed his erection against Harry's entrance. Harry's lips parted just as Draco opened his mouth around his. The second their tongues met Harry felt Draco's erection pulse against his entrance. He moaned in the back of his throat and felt Draco's release against him. It trickled down his leg until it hit the water.

Draco leaned heavily against him as he attempted to catch his breath. Harry opened his eyes, still stunned by both the pleasure and intensity. Draco hadn't gone all the way with him, but they had been close. Harry could still remember the feeling of Draco's finger inside him.

Draco pulled away. "Mind if I take over now."

Harry couldn't even find words to say so he just shook his head. Draco tiredly washed his hair and body. While it was still dim enough that Harry couldn't make out his tattoo or details of his private parts, he still felt himself staring at the blond. The feelings raging inside him were so intense and foreign to him that he almost didn't believe it was real. Once Draco was finished washing himself he turned the water off and was about to step out.

"Hey, aren't you going to show me your tattoo?"

Draco turned around and Harry could make out a faint smirk on his face. "Not yet."

"When?" Harry asked, annoyed.

Draco slowly approached him and put both hands on either side of his head. "When we have sex."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Are you trying to bribe me into having sex with you?"

Draco snorted and pulled his hands away. "No. It's just something to look forward to," he said.

"The sex or the tattoo?" Harry smirked.

"Both," Draco replied with a drawl.

With that he stepped out of the shower and disappeared. Harry heard the door close. He sighed and after rinsing off he too stepped out. He put a towel around his waist and stepped out into the room. Draco was all dry, even his hair, and was clad in only his boxers. Harry watched him climb into bed. The blond smirked as he saw Harry coming out with only a towel around his waist. Harry felt his cheeks burn. There was much more light outside of the bathroom and he wasn't ready for Draco to see him up close and personal. He grabbed his wand and waved it over him so that his boxers appeared in place of the towel. Then he dried himself off.

He turned to see Draco staring at him with a raised eyebrow. "We did just grope in the shower naked."

"Are you saying you want to see me naked?" Harry asked, grinning. "I guess it's just something to look forward to."

Draco snorted and rolled his eyes. "I set myself up for that."

Harry grinned. He enjoyed throwing Draco's words back in his face. As he climbed into bed Harry stared at the ceiling marveling at how different their relationship was not just since Hogwarts but from the first moment they started working together. Harry drifted off to sleep, wondering if they could really pull off breaking the Vow.

The next morning they both got up at four. They packed up their things and headed out to the wizard car. They set the destination for Kovddoskaisi Mountain. They figured it would be the most likely place because although it's only the fourth highest mountain in Finland, it is known to the be the hardest to get to due to its location between two valley lakes and harsh terrain. It definitely seemed to be the most isolated mountain. Unfortunately, the trip there was 12 hours by wizard car. It would be a long day.

Both of them decided to lean the large seat back and doze for a few more hours. When Harry awoke he caught Draco staring at him. The blond smirked it off but Harry felt his cheeks heat up. He wondered how long the blond had been watching him sleep. Hopefully he didn't do anything embarrassing. They brought along snacks and drinks like the last time and Harry took time to read more of the journal. He wanted to make sure that he was as prepared as possible.

After another few hours of silence as they listened to music and Draco sat sipping on his butterbeer, Draco turned to him.

"So, are you going to tell your friends about us?"

Harry turned to him surprised. "Well, yeah, I can't really keep them in the dark forever. It would be too stressful to have to sneak around and hide it from them all the time and use work as an excuse. Why? Do you not want me to tell them?"

Draco shrugged. "I don't really care so long as Weasley doesn't give me any grief."

Harry smiled. "I think you're asking for a bit too much there."

The blond snorted and then took another sip. Harry studied him. He wondered if Draco wanted him to tell them or not. Maybe he thought Harry was just experimenting with him and didn't want to tell anyone about it because it was temporary. Was the blond testing his reasoning for being with him? Harry thought about it. If he were honest with himself, he was getting in far too deep with Draco. He thought about what it would be like if they broke up or things didn't work out, and he just couldn't picture it. There was a part of him that was hesitant to tell Draco what he was feeling because he still wasn't sure what Draco wanted out of the relationship. Was the blond just experimenting to lose his virginity and then move on? Or maybe he was sticking with it because he needed Harry's help with the Vow?

The thoughts and questions swirled in his mind. Harry finally shook his head and tried to distract himself with reading more. Draco seemed to doze off again. Harry couldn't fall asleep. He stared at Draco while he dozed. The blond seemed so peaceful with his fair blond hair, his bangs falling to the side, and his gorgeous pale, smooth skin. Draco was attractive enough to get anyone, including Blake who was very attractive too. So why did Draco not get together with Blake after school? And why would Draco choose Harry to be his first? Unless…was he lying about being a virgin?

Was it just a ploy to get Harry to trust him enough to sleep with him?

Harry shook his head again. The silence was deafening. He couldn't get his paranoid thoughts out of his head or any of his worries. He slapped the book against his forehead and groaned softly. He heard a snort and turned. Draco was staring at him. So the blond hadn't been asleep. He had just been resting his eyes.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing. I just wish we had a better idea of what we're getting into."

Draco sat up. "It's nothing we can't handle I'm sure. Besides we both have experience fighting dragons now."

"What? Based on the one dragon that tried to barbeque you and who knocked me over with its tail?"

"That and your experience in the Triwizard Tournament."

"That doesn't count. Besides, it was so long ago."

"And you rode a dragon during 7th year. It was all over the papers."

Harry opened his mouth and then closed it. "Well I have no experience with ancient dragons."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Are you afraid?"

"No, it's not that, I just…whenever there's not enough information I just get worried that something's going to go wrong."

"Considering the type of quest we're going on, I'm sure things will go wrong," Draco retorted.

Harry's lips curled upward. "Quest?"

"That's what it's called."

"I would've said mission, but okay."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Is that another muggle term?"

Harry grinned. "By the time we're done with this quest you're going to be an expert in muggle terminology."

Draco made a face. "Great. Kill me now."

Harry just laughed. Draco lay back down and sighed. Harry grabbed a butterbeer and stared out the window, watching the landscape. They fell into a comfortable silence. Half way through the ride they both thought they'd go crazy so they made a really poor wizard's chess board out of what they had, mainly using the covers of the journal, and any little item or object they could find as the pieces. They attempted to play a really bad game of wizard's chess and while failing miserably, it created enough entertainment that they didn't lose their minds.

By the time they got there it was around four in the afternoon. They headed straight for the mountain and parked their wizard car down at the bottom. They flew up toward the peak and made a magical doorway to enter. The smell of something burning met them as they entered.

"Do you smell that?" Harry asked, gripping his wand.

Draco turned to him and grinned. "It smells like this place is being used."

Harry nodded and then swallowed. "We need to be careful."

Draco nodded in agreement. They cautiously entered the mountain and found that the entire inside was all hollow. Whatever rock had been inside had been burned and demolished by the dragons to make room for them. They could see bits and pieces of charred rock on the bottom. There wasn't a dragon in sight though. They floated down to the very bottom and Harry could see something in the back corner. He motioned for Draco to follow him. Way in the back was a nest made out of moss, grass, tree branches and other things. As they approached the nest, which was the size of the room they had just shared, they saw something in the center of the nest that made them stop. It was an egg. A black, shiny egg and it was whole and unhatched.

"Holy dragon scales," Draco breathed.

Harry glanced at him in amusement. "I can't believe this. If the egg hasn't hatched, where is the mother? Why isn't she with the nest?"

Draco shrugged. "I didn't think dragons sat on the nests."

"No but they guard them."

"I'm sure inside a mountain the nest is safe."

"I don't know," Harry said. "I have a bad feeling."

"They sleep during the day so I'm sure even if it's here somewhere it's asleep."

Harry nodded. "We'll have to camp out and wait for it I guess."

"It will definitely be back for the egg. We should wait for it here."

Harry's eyes widened. "Here? Right by its nest? It could infuriate the dragon more."

"We need this flame. We're so close and if it senses us from outside it might take the egg and fly off," Draco whispered harshly. "We can't lose this chance."

He knew Draco was right but he still didn't like it. He wished he had thought to bring his Invisibility Cloak.

"So what's the plan?"

Draco pushed his bangs out of his face. "I have to hold the container, which means I can't use my wand when I'm holding it. It's too big and heavy to hold with just one hand so you're going to have to back me up with your wand. We should probably separate too. If we're both in the same place that makes us easy targets. I'm going to have to be the bait. I need it to throw its flame at me so I need to be far enough away from it to threaten it, but not be close enough that it can eat me or claw me to death."

Harry nodded. "You can hide behind that large piece of rubble. It's far enough away that you should be at a good distance from the nest. I can hide closer to the nest."

Draco nodded. They both split up. Draco hid behind the large piece of rubble at least ten or so feet away. Harry hid behind a large column of rock that was by the nest. They waited in silence. Draco was ready with the container and Harry held his wand firmly. As it became darker, Harry cast a spell, one that he learned from Hermione, so his eyes had night vision. That way he didn't have to use a wand to attract any unwanted attention.

He was starting to wonder if the dragon was ever coming back for its egg. Then he felt the ground shake. He heard a low growl somewhere in the distance. Harry held his breath. He hoped Draco was all right. He didn't want to risk peeking out and being seen by the dragon. He heard the dragon getting closer and could feel it approaching the nest. Harry very cautiously peered out from behind the pillar of rock. The mother was very large, at least as large as a Hungarian Horntail. She went off and sniffed the egg, nudging it gentle with her large snout. Harry watched the amazing creature with its sleek back scales. A black dragon was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. Its eyes were a deep gold.

Harry watched it in awe. He was so entranced he almost didn't see the spark that hit the dragon's back until the dragon wheeled around, growling with its large jaw open and teeth bared. Draco was still in his hiding place but he got the dragon's attention. The dragon turned away from the nest, bending its neck forward threateningly as it made its way over to Draco. Harry creeped out of his hiding place. The dragon lashed out a claw at the rubble and Draco ran from his hiding spot. The dragon roared but it didn't blow any flame.

_Come on, come on! Blow your flame already!_

Harry's heart was pounding. He wanted to rush over and help Draco but if he did that they were both sitting ducks. Draco pointed his wand at the beast as he backed away. The space wasn't large enough and the dragon only needed to take a few large steps toward him before it was on the other side of the area. Draco had little room to defend himself. He shot another spell which tied up the dragon's legs. It fell forward, roaring loudly. It squirmed to get out of the hold. Harry could see Draco's wide eyes and pale face. He was doing a good job holding his own. The dragon's snout began to release smoke.

_This is it! _

Harry watched with anxiety as the dragon's jaw opened. A bright glow emitted. Draco quickly stuffed his wand in his jeans and readied the container. The dragon attempted to get up on its two front feet. It could just barely balance. Its head moved backward just slightly and suddenly its jaw lunged forward as a wave of flames came right at him. Draco's eyes widened but not just in fear. The container was ready but the flames were not the white magical flames talked about in the book. They were simple orange flames.

Draco jumped out of the way and suddenly wheeled his head around to Harry. Harry gazed back at him not understanding. He was about to open his mouth to tell him to bottle up the flame anyway when another roar echoed around them. The mother, still tied up, roared in anguish. The ground shook and Harry's heart nearly jumped out of his chest. Another Onyx Dragon appeared. This one was even larger and had spikes down its back and tail. The eyes glowed with rage and it roared so loud Harry winced. It had to have been the father. Draco backed away fearfully. Harry had ducked back behind the pillar so as not to be seen, but Draco was now in real trouble. The mother was struggling and the father dragon saw this and roared with rage. The dragon went over to her, nudging her with his nostril. She whined a bit. The father's chest seemed to grow and his jaw opened widely. Instead of flames, his spiked tail whipped around and Draco attempted to dodge it. He tripped and fell and the container slipped out of his hands.

_NO!_

Harry's mind went into a panic. The container was fine but it was now five feet away and Draco was scrambling to get to his feet. The male dragon charged at him. Harry's scream was drowned about by the crash as the dragon rammed into the wall just inches away from having Draco in its jaw. Draco had thrown himself sideways and whipped out his wand. He shielded himself as the dragon's tail whipped around again. It blocked him from getting impaled but not from the force. The force of the attack sent Draco flying backward. Suddenly as Draco was sprawled on the ground, the dragon bent forward and Harry sensed it coming. Its nostrils flared, smoke emitted from them, and its jaw opened wide. Within seconds, Harry used his wand to move the container toward Draco so that the male dragon wouldn't step on it and crush it. Draco saw the dragon and saw the container sliding toward him. He couldn't use both his wand and the container, so Draco dropped his wand, grabbed the container with both hands and lifted it up just as blinding white flames burst from the dragon's mouth. Draco cried out and buried his face behind the container as he held it.

Harry's eyes were wide in terror as the white flames slammed into Draco and the container. He used a spell to direct the flames into the container so that it would hopefully not burn Draco in the process. Draco's body was being pushed backward at the force of the flames. His arms were trembling but he didn't let go of the container. It felt like the blast lasted forever. The flames began to die down and Harry was frightened to look at the result, to look at Draco. The blond was trembling and his clothes were burned and frayed. Harry couldn't tell from that distance if he was injured. With trembling hands, Draco sealed the container shut. The white flames swirled around inside of it. The container suddenly cracked a little in the side. Draco instinctively put a hand over the crack.

The dragon, however, was not finished yet. It began to approach and Draco was completely defenseless. He couldn't let go of the container. Harry did the only thing he could think. He ran toward the nest and jumped inside. He pointed his wand at the egg.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Harry shouted.

The dragon's head shot up and he roared loudly as his eyes fell on Harry standing right beside the egg. The mother whined and struggled against the restraints. They began to break. Harry knew he had to act fast. The male dragon's attention was now riveted on Harry.

"Run Draco!" Harry exclaimed.

The blond was scrambling backward as the dragon took large steps toward Harry. It looked almost like a velociraptor coming at him with its tail whipping behind it and its jaws open and ready for attack. Harry used his wand to fling Draco out of the dragon's path. The dragon was faster than Harry anticipated and the dragon's tail scraped against Draco. He cried out in pain as blood dripped down his arm. He was flung to the side and landed on his back. He was clutching the container for dear life.

Just as the male dragon approached him, the egg beside him began to crack and shake. Harry wasn't sure if it was the commotion that was waking up the egg, or if it was just horrible timing on their part. The baby dragon from within whined as it began forcing itself out. The male dragon roared at seeing the egg break. It tipped over and the baby dragon's nose peered out. Harry used his wand and cracked the rest of the egg and jumped behind the baby dragon. The male dragon roared as its face came right into the nest. The baby dragon made a sound as it gazed up at its father. Harry was behind the baby dragon, hoping that the father wouldn't lunge for fear of hurting the baby.

Unexpectedly, the baby dragon turned and noticed Harry. It instantly jumped on him and pushed him down. It was a lot heavier than he anticipated and definitely almost as big as he was. Harry wrapped his arms around the baby dragon, trying to lift it up as the male dragon pushed his nose in. It couldn't seem to separate Harry and the baby dragon and so it couldn't use its teeth. The dragon roared loudly and turned in a circle as if trying to figure out what to do. Draco was being blocked by the male dragon so he couldn't see what was going on in the nest.

"Draco, get out of here! NOW!" Harry screamed.

The blond looked torn. He had a firm grasp on the container which was slowly beginning to crack. The male dragon turned to gaze back at Draco and the blond instantly ran. He used his wand to float himself up and the male dragon roared at him, flapping its wings, but did not pursue him. Draco's eyes locked into Harry's. There was fear clearly written on his face. Once Draco disappeared up toward the entrance, Harry felt more relieved. That is until the male dragon turned its attention back on him. The baby dragon kept nudging his face as it sniffed him. When it opened its jaw Harry was relieved to see it didn't have teeth yet. Harry held it firmly but gently. His body swayed from the weight. The dragon began to squirm in his grasp and suddenly dug its claws into him. Harry cried out but held onto it as the male dragon approached.

Slowly, Harry stepped forward. The male dragon growled threateningly as it put its face toward them. Harry lifted the baby dragon as best he could toward the dragon's face. The baby dragon turned its small head and in seeing its father took its claws out of Harry and climbed up on its father's nose. The baby dragon made sounds as it sniffed its father's nose and clung on. The male dragon closed its jaw and lifted up its head. The mother dragon whined and Harry pointed his wand toward her. The male dragon growled but Harry did a spell and the restraints broke. The female dragon then rose up and shook herself off. She approached the male dragon and the baby dragon then crawled from its father's nose to its mother's.

To Harry's shock, the male dragon turned its attention back on him and lunged. Harry dove out of the way and fell to the ground. He looked up just in time to see the dragon's spiked tail coming at him. He rolled out of the way quickly and heard the loud crash right beside him. He scrambled to his feet and ran. He just knew he had to get out of there. He knew he had to run as fast as lightning. If he could just get a little further he could float himself up like Draco did. Harry ran but the female dragon was in front of him. She roared unhappily, but didn't lunge since she had the baby on her head. Harry's vision began to narrow and suddenly all he could see were her legs. He had to get through them. He willed his legs to run faster and faster until he breezed right through her legs and past her. He kept running and he felt his muscles stretch and burn, but he was going faster. He heard the dragons behind him. He thought the floating spell, not having enough time to wave his wand around himself and he felt his body lifting up. His eyes caught sight of a nearby ledge and his stretched out toward it. His body felt like it was stretching awkwardly, as if his arms were getting longer.

He felt the dragon beneath him and threw himself toward the ledge. He jumped on top of it and nearly slipped. He felt the dragon lunge upward toward him and in a split second, with his heard pounding in his hears and adrenaline pumping, he dashed up the wall, climbing up the wall with ease and jumping up toward the second ledge where the entrance was. He dashed out toward the entrance with it in sight, thinking of nothing but making it out alive so he could help Draco. He felt the hot flames behind him but he flew out the entrance and landed hard on his feet. His feet seemed to bend and absorb the fall. His vision was still strange but he could hear Draco nearby. He needed to get to him. Harry just kept running. Without knowing where he was going or without thinking it, he just ran. The wind seemed to blow all over him and it felt like he was flying. He was running so fast the trees were whizzing by him. He saw Draco standing by the car. He had placed the container in the car and was pacing by it, looking up at the mountain, waiting for him. The look on his face made Harry's heart ache.

Suddenly, Harry jumped toward the car, thinking of nothing but just needing to make it to the car before the male dragon pursued him. He flew into the car and hit the window. Draco jumped, letting out a yell at the sound. Draco had wheeled around, wand in hand, and was staring at him with wide eyes. He breathed heavily trying so hard to catch his breath. His body was trembling and his heart was pounding so hard. He could hear things. He could hear the dragons roaring inside the mountain. He opened his mouth to tell Draco to hurry up and get in but all that came out was a long howl.

Draco jumped at the sound. His wand was still in hand and he was staring at him. Harry tried to speak and move again and he suddenly realized as he tried to step forward that his whole body lurched with the movement. Suddenly he felt as though he were crouched. He gazed up at Draco, not understanding in that split moment. Draco stared at him for a moment. They were both still and silent. The blond had his wand raised and Harry didn't understand. Why was Draco raising his wand at him? The blond looked like he was going to shoot a spell at him. Harry's instincts were to put his hands up in front of his face, but instead his whole body lurched backward and a whining sound emitted from him. He backed into the door and stopped. He gazed downward and saw two furry white paws in front of him. He stared in disbelief. His head raised back up and he let out a whimper. Draco began to lower his wand.

"Harry?"

Harry let out another sound. His body wasn't cooperating. Draco's voice echoed, as if it was all around him. The dragons roared and Harry whined again. Draco wheeled his head around toward the mountain then back at him.

"Harry, if that's you, change back."

Harry whined loudly. Change back? What was going on? Why did he feel so strange? He gazed down again at the paws and slowly stretched his body out. He turned his head, which was incredibly flexible to look at the rest of him. His body was sleek and slim, covered in bright white fur. He saw the long furry tail and almost choked. It just came out as a gurgled yelp.

"If you're Harry, sit."

Harry whipped his head around toward him. Was he seriously asking him to sit? Growling, Harry willed his butt to sit on the seat. His body cooperated and his furry butt landed on the seat. Draco's eyes widened. The dragon roared again and this time they saw a dark figure up in the sky. Draco threw himself into the wizard car and turned it on. He put it in invisibility mode and began to rise up to the sky. The dragon circled the mountain and as they got farther away Harry's heart began to slow. The dragon couldn't see them. When they were out of sight of the mountain Harry released his breath he had been holding which just came out as a breathy growl. Draco set the car to autopilot and gazed back at him.

"I didn't know you had an Animagus form."

Harry didn't say anything. He wished he could see what he looked like.

"So you're a fox? Not bad. I would've pictured a Griffin or something."

Harry had the urge to roll his eyes but strangely couldn't. So he just opted to growl again, low and quiet.

"Aren't you going to change back?" Draco asked.

Harry whined. He began to approach Draco and instead walked back and forth for a minute.

Draco's eyes widened. "You don't know how?"

Harry whined again. Draco swallowed. "Oh. Well I'm not sure what to do. Now that we have the flame we can go back to Dimitri but it might be too late or early when we get there."

Harry plopped down on the car floor and released a sigh. He put his head down and he saw Draco smile.

"Don't worry. You'll change back eventually."

The blond came over to him and reached down to pet his head. Harry growled at him. Draco just laughed.

"Come on, you're an animal. I can't resist petting you."

Harry wanted nothing more than to change back. He was feeling weird and his wounds were beginning to ache. In fact, in his Animagus form he couldn't feel his wounds, but suddenly he was starting to feel them. He heard a crack as his body began to stretch again. He heard Draco gasp and suddenly he collapsed to the floor. When he opened his eyes he saw his hands in front of him.

"Oh good! I thought I was talking to a fox. I was really worried there for a moment that I was just going crazy," Draco said.

Harry tried to sit up but he hissed in pain.

"Are you injured?" Draco asked. The blond bent down to help him.

"Yeah," Harry said hoarsely.

Draco helped him get up onto the couch. Harry leaned back and winced. When he glanced down his clothes were covered in blood.

"Where are you hurt?" Draco asked, bending down toward him.

"Everywhere," Harry said, groaning. "It's nothing serious. The baby dragon just dug its claws into me."

"It hatched?!" Draco exclaimed.

"Yeah," Harry said, reaching up a hand to brush his messy hair out of his face. "It decided I was a rock it could climb on."

Draco winced. "Ouch. At least we got out of there alive, especially you."

Harry tried to nod but it was too painful.

"Unfortunately we don't have any Dittany here, but once we get home…"

"It's okay. I'll live," Harry said, wincing again. "I can't believe we were successful."

"I can't believe we almost didn't get the flame. Who knew that only the male Onyx dragons had the white flame? You'd think that would be important enough to mention in the books," he retorted.

"Yeah, really," Harry agreed. "I think we need to take a little break before looking for the plant-creature."

"Yeah, well, we don't even know where to start really with that one. We'll have to do some research first anyway. Besides," Draco said, after a slight hesitation, "you've got your upcoming _thing_ with Cyprian."

Harry turned his head slowly to gaze at him. "Are you still upset about that?"

Draco shrugged. "It's nothing really. But it's in a couple weeks."

"Yeah, I should be healed by then."

Draco didn't say anything. They were silent for a bit. Harry closed his eyes, trying to rest despite the pain he was in.

"So, how come you never mentioned being an Animagus?"

Harry cracked an eye open. "I didn't realize I had one."

Draco nearly choked on his butterbeer. "That was the first time you transfigured?"

"Yeah. It was weird. It was like, I just kept thinking of needing to be able to run faster and get out of there and suddenly it was like I could just run faster and I felt lighter. I didn't even notice the change. It must've been very confusing for the dragons."

Draco snorted. "I'm sure. It probably gave you an advantage though, seeing as how it probably shocked them."

"Yeah." Harry hesitated for a minute. "I can't wait to go home. All this traveling is exhausting."

Draco nodded in agreement. They fell into silence and Draco reached over to grab the container.

"I have to keep putting spells on it to keep from breaking. It should hold for right now but I'll have to keep an eye on it. Maybe just restrengthen the charms every day just to be safe."

"That's a good idea."

A little while later Harry woke up and realized he had fallen asleep. Draco helped open a butterbeer for him and some pickled Bogart chips. To his relief they were home a couple hours after that. They both were too exhausted to talk much. They had to park the wizard car in the invisibility mode so that muggles wouldn't see it. When they went inside Harry could feel his eyelids drooping.

"I'll go find some Dittany for your wounds," Draco said.

Harry nodded sleepily. "Okay. I'm going to take a quick bath to just wash them."

He slowly made his way up to his room. He sighed as he carefully waved his wand to get his clothes off. He went to the bathroom and had to slowly lean down to turn on the water. Once the bath was warm, he waved his wand to produce bubbles and left his wand by the tub to act as a sort of candle, emitting a soft glow as he sunk into the warm water. Harry sighed in contentment. He didn't realize how much time passed until he heard a knock at the bathroom door.

"Yeah?" Harry asked, opening his eyes.

Draco entered the bathroom and Harry felt his cheeks heat up. He quickly glanced down to make sure bubbles were covering his private area. The blond walked in with a jar of Dittany.

"I found some. Thankfully I had bought more after the incident with the plant just in case we needed more."

Harry nodded gratefully. "Okay. I'm coming out."

The blond thankfully didn't smirk or make any sexual insinuations probably because he knew Harry was in pain. Harry was grateful that Draco knew when to reel in his attitude and be serious or sensitive. He really liked that about him. Harry felt his face heat up again at the thought of having such intense feelings for the blond. He still couldn't believe it was happening. Harry slowly stood up and waved his wand so a towel wrapped around his waist. It was a short towel and didn't hide very much. It showed most of his thigh and even part of his hips and waistline, but thankfully it covered his privates well enough. He was still rather damp when he emerged. Draco was standing by the bed waiting. Harry's cheeks felt hot again.

"So…should I sit?"

"Sure," Draco said.

Harry sat down on the bed. Draco walked around and sat down behind him. Harry felt the bed sink in response. He heard the jar open and flinched when Draco touched one of the deep claw marks.

"Good thing it was just a baby dragon. These are deep but thankfully not serious," he said.

"Yeah," Harry replied.

He felt the blond rub his shoulder as he put the medicine on. He had claw marks on both his shoulders and on his thighs. That was where the baby dragon had dug in. When it started squirming it had also scraped along his side and stomach area, but those were just superficial scrapes. They weren't deep like the claw marks. Draco moved on to his other shoulder. The pain began to ebb a little as the Dittany soaked into the wound.

"I still can't believe we did it," Draco murmured as he slathered more on his other shoulder.

Harry opened his eyes, not realizing he had shut them in contentment. Draco's hands were warm and soft. "Yeah, me either."

"I still can't believe you have an Animagus form," Draco said, snorting. "I bet the Minister will love that."

"It's not like I knew about it. I'm not technically illegal. Do you have one?"

Draco made a sound in the back of his throat. "Not that I know of."

"You never know. You may have one," Harry said. "I wonder what you'd be…"

"Maybe a dragon," Draco said lightheartedly.

Harry turned his head a bit to glance at him. "If you turn out to be a dragon, I will kill you. Because if so you should've transfigured in front of those dragons and talked some sense into them."

Smirking, Draco just snorted. "Right. Well, I doubt I have one."

"Do your parents have one?"

Draco fumbled at the mention of his parents. "No. Not that I know of, but then again they don't bother to tell me everything."

Harry felt his heart ache. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Draco said. "Your shoulders are done. Are there any other wounds?"

Harry flushed red. "Er, I can do it, thanks."

"It's fine, I can do it. You can barely move as it is."

Harry bit his lip to try to stop his face from flushing. He hoped Draco wouldn't notice. Harry turned around to face him.

"Er…there are some on my thighs."

Draco's eyes locked with his. He nodded. "You can lie down, if that's more comfortable."

Harry nodded. He scooted up more on the bed and lay down on his back. Draco leaned over him. Harry lifted up his towel just enough for Draco to be able to see the wounds. He was grateful the wounds weren't too high up on his thighs. Still, the towel wasn't covering much anymore. Draco reached into the jar and then rubbed his fingers along the wound. Harry winced and tensed up. Draco glanced at him, hesitated, and then rubbed some more on. As he was doing it, Harry was trying not to picture their last intimate moment, or the fact that he was pretty much naked and lying down on his bed. Draco's fingers moved to the next wound and they seemed to linger. He wondered if the blond was going to touch him, but then his fingers moved away.

"Okay. That should be good."

Harry sat up. A part of him felt a bit disappointed, but his body was aching. It wasn't a good night to be physical anyway. Draco seemed to sense this.

"Thanks," Harry said.

The blond nodded and closed the jar. He put it on Harry's nightstand by his bed. Then he got up and moved to the door. As Harry slowly pulled himself up to reach for his wand so he could get into pajamas, Draco stopped and turned.

"Thanks," he said, pausing as Harry glanced up at him, "for helping me. You didn't have to help me with this and I know it's dangerous…"

Harry just shook his head. "It's no problem. I offered, so…"

Draco just nodded. "Well thanks anyway."

Harry smiled. Draco gazed at him for a second and then grabbed the doorknob.

"Draco?" Harry blurted out suddenly.

The blond turned around. He had stopped just when he cracked the door open. The blond stared at him curiously. Harry was trying to figure out exactly why he called him and what he wanted to say. He couldn't find the words.

"What? Do you need help?"

"Er…," Harry trailed off.

Draco snorted, assuming that's what he wanted. The blond walked over toward him and offered his hand. Harry took it and the blond pulled him to his feet.

"Thanks," Harry said.

He stared at Draco nervously. The blond just nodded. Before Draco could turn away, Harry wrapped his arms around him and drew him in for a kiss. The blond responded to him immediately and wrapped his arms around his back. Harry pushed his lips closer, feeling his body heat up in response. Draco pressed his tongue against Harry's bottom lip, and Harry instantly opened his mouth. The blond slid his tongue inside and Harry felt heat rush to his groin. Draco groaned and began to trail his hands up Harry's back. Harry suddenly broke away, hissing in pain.

"Sorry," Draco said. He pulled his hands away. "This probably isn't the best time for that," he said, his lips curling into a slight smirk.

Harry raised an eyebrow but then nodded. He opened his mouth and caught himself before he could say something very awkward.

"Er, well thanks. Goodnight."

Draco snorted and nodded. The blond then left and shut the door behind him. Harry could still feel his groin throbbing in anticipation. He sighed and waved his wand around him as he dressed in his pajamas and slowly crawled into bed. He lay there for a minute. He had almost asked Draco to stay with him. What exactly did he want from that? Was he ready to go all the way? Or was it something more? Yawning, Harry drifted off to sleep.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**idreamofdrarry**: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too! Yeah studying sucks. My exams completely drained me and my poor motivation to write. Plus I had some family things come up so that's why it took so long. Thanks for being patient! It's not just a matter of grades. These are my national exam in court reporting (which I think I already told you in a private message), and so I need these to work in my field. It felt good so I hope I passed! I will know by the end of this month. =) I'm soooooooo happy you love this story! YAY! Sorry for the extra time! I will definitely update this sooner this next time!

**HPmeghan7474**: Yay! So glad you liked the chapter! I hope this one was hot too, lol! Yep, a race to break the vow. But it makes for some good suspense, muahahahaha! They are definitely making progress in their relationship. They still have a ways to go, but they are getting there. I don't want to rush it too much, but I'm also conveying how badly they are attracted to one another. It just didn't make sense for Draco to wait any longer to make a move because he's the one who's had feelings for Harry longer (but you will find out more about that later =) ) Hehehehehe, I won't tell you what the tattoo is, muahhaha! You will find out VERY soon! =) I will update soon! I promise not to make you wait this long again. If I can help it, that is. Thanks!

**mysterywriter125**: Yay, thanks! (dances to the techno music). I promise not to take so long for an update again! Life can get in the way. Poo! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! =)

**Jace**: Sorry it took longer in updating this time around. Life got in the way, but I promise not to leave you hanging too long. I will still be updating regularly, just hopefully it won't take this long next time! I will update asap! Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

**Guest**: Yay! So glad you like this story! You're welcome! =) Thanks for reviewing. I will update asap!

**StubbornBlonde**: Awww! I love you too! =) Yep! Have to have the hot moments. Hehehe! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter too! I promise more steamy moments to come. Right around the corner! Hehe! Sorry it took SOOOO long in updating this time around. I promise not to make you wait too long again! I tried to get it out sooner but life got in the way. Anyway, better late than never I guess, lol! But yes, I promise to update asap!

**DeiStarr**: Awwww, thanks! I adore you for being such a good reviewer! =) I'm sorry it took so long. I didn't mean it to this time! Hopefully you're not mad! I promise to update sooner this next time around. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! =)

**Carling**: So glad to hear you're doing better! That's always great news. Well my exams felt really good so I hope I passed! I won't know until the end of this month. I'll let you know. Yes I am definitely dedicated, but it did take me longer than expected to update this chapter. I promise to try not to take so long next time. Life got in the way, so annoying! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter. =) Yay! Hopefully you're finished going back and re-reading so hopefully I'm posting this just in time. I will update asap!


	17. The Invitation

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note:** Sorry again for the delay, lol! I just can't seem to update as quickly lately. I do have to continue studying right now (again), but don't worry I will continue to update regularly. I will try to keep it within 2 weeks but don't panic if it gets delayed a bit now and again. I won't make you guys wait too long.

_**SPECIAL NOTE:**_ **Thanks to all of you who are reviewing**! There are still a lot of people following but not reviewing, but that's okay because those of you loyal followers reviewing are keeping me motivated. So long as I'm getting some feedback per chapter, I'm satisfied. I would like to personally thank _**DeiStarr, Carling, StubbornBlonde, idreamofdrarry, HPmeghan7474, Magical Witch, **__and__** Guest **_for being loyal reviewers! You guys keep me motivated and I love all your feedback. I want this story to be the best drarry story ever so your feedback makes that possible. Let me know if you notice any mistakes. Also I would to thank newcomers _**mysterywriter125, Jace, **__**MblaqSarang**__**, **__**kistenbabe**__**, **__**mochiusagi**__** , **__**thefeyrabbit**__** and **__**bbbreeex**_ for reviewing. Hopefully you guys continue to like the story. Full responses to reviews are at the end of the chapter (like always _*smiles*_ )

**Chapter 16: The Invitation **

A couple weeks passed since the dragon incident. They kept the container of brilliant white flames in the attic, charmed inside a cupboard in case it broke in the middle of the night. Each day and night Draco would put more strengthening charms to hold the flames in, which seemed to be doing the trick, but just in case it didn't they had a backup plan. If it broke, the flames would be sealed in the cupboard for the time being. Harry's wounds had healed and during that time they had received another assignment from Dimitri. That meant putting off searching for clues on the plant-creature.

Harry got up and stretched. Cyprian's event was that evening. It was only for a few hours but Harry realized he was dreading it. It wasn't that Cyprian was a horrible person to be around, but he would rather spend time with Draco looking for clues. After all they had a little over a year. Draco's birthday was coming up in a month. Considering how long it took to find a dragon that had left its mark over time, a year didn't seem like enough time to find the plant-creature.

After getting dressed he went down for breakfast to see Draco already sitting down eating. He was drinking a butterbeer already.

Harry raised an eyebrow. Draco just glanced at him and snorted.

"Ready for tonight?"

Harry shrugged. "It shouldn't be too bad."

Draco was silent for a minute. "I guess we should start Dimitri's assignment tomorrow."

"Yeah, er, what is it again?"

"Some plant that supposedly lives in dense rain forest type places because it loves humidity and rain and all that. Apparently it also likes plucking the feathers off of birds and eating them."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Well it is called the…," Draco trailed off for a minute and summoned the letter. "Oh right, it's the Ioco Bush, also nicknamed the Jokester. Apparently it's got a sense of humor."

Harry smiled. "It sounds better than most of the other plants we've had to study."

"Yeah. I was hoping to get started today to get it over with so we can start looking for that plant-creature…"

"Draco, I'm going to this thing. So get over it. Anyway, since we can't do the assignment yet, in case it takes more than a few hours, how about we go to the Ministry library and try to look up what we can on the plant-creature."

The blond's expression seemed to lighten. He took a second to respond but Harry could already sense he was in a better mood.

"Fine."

The two of them finished eating breakfast and getting dressed before they took off. When they arrived at the Ministry, they saw Aurors rushing about. Harry caught sight of Mr. Weasley.

"Mr. Weasley," Harry called, waving.

Mr. Weasley stopped and headed over to him. His expression darkened when he saw Draco standing nearby.

"Harry, what are you doing here?"

"Just doing some research for our job," Harry said, gesturing over to Draco.

The blond was clearly keeping his distance. He had his arms crossed and he was at least five feet away. Mr. Weasley eyed Draco suspiciously.

"Yes, Ron told me about your…situation with Mr. Malfoy. I'm terribly sorry for you," he added quietly.

From his peripheral vision, Harry saw Draco roll his eyes. Apparently Mr. Weasley didn't say it quiet enough.

"It's fine," Harry said quickly. "What's going on here?"

"Oh, we're just preparing in case of attack," Mr. Weasley said. "More Dementors have gone missing and it's concerning for everyone. Luckily we've taken precautions."

Mr. Weasley hesitated and Harry sensed he didn't want to say too much in front of Draco.

"Er, what kind of precautions?" Harry asked. "It's okay to speak freely. Me and Draco are both under attack by him, as I'm sure you've heard."

Mr. Weasley's eyes widened and his mouth parted in surprise. Harry was certain it wasn't because of him mentioning they were under attack. Ron most likely told his dad everything. Harry realized too late that it was because he had referred to Malfoy as Draco. He and Ron never referred to him by his first name.

"Uh, yes, I did," Mr. Weasley said hesitantly. "Well I'm afraid I can't say much right now. There's a lot to do so please excuse me."

He watched Mr. Weasley hurry away. Harry sighed heavily. Draco finally walked closer and stared after him as well.

"I love how even when I'm a victim I'm treated like the enemy."

Harry gave him a sympathetic look. "Well, you did join Voldemort's ranks. You have to give people time to accept that you were forced into it and that's not the kind of person you are."

Draco stared at him for a minute. He seemed uncomfortable saying anything further so Harry changed the subject.

"The library is down below in the sublevel."

"Sublevel?" Draco asked. "I thought this lobby area was the lowest level."

Smiling, Harry shook his head. "It's a secret library so of course it wouldn't be on the map of the building."

Draco just gave him a look. "Well how was I supposed to know that?! I don't have sweaty dreams like you!"

A couple Aurors glanced at them as they rushed by, having heard the outburst. Harry felt his cheeks heat up. "Shut-up, Draco!"

The blond shrugged. "What? It's true."

Harry just rolled his eyes. "Come on, follow me."

They walked over to the elevator on the far right side. They stepped in and instead of saying the floor they wanted aloud, Harry waved his wand and thought the secret incantation in his head. A button appeared on the wall across from them. It was glowing and had the symbol of a phoenix on it. Harry pushed it and the elevator started to go down.

"Won't people think it's odd we're going down?"

Harry smiled. "Nope. There's a force-field that goes up so no one can see where we're going. It just makes it appear as though the elevator is busy and if someone tries to access it now, it won't work."

Draco looked mildly impressed. "So how did you know about this library? I didn't think you were the Hermione-type."

Harry laughed. "I'm not but I remember Kingsley telling me about it when he was still an Auror. He gave me the secret spell once he was Minister. I had to have private tutoring since I missed a full year of school, plus NEWTs so I would come here to read and get tutoring from Aurors."

"Well aren't you special," Draco grumbled.

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. As they stepped out, Harry gave him a look. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Draco said with a shrug.

Harry glared. "Draco."

The blond sighed irritably. He wheeled around. "I was forced against my will to join a deadly cult! Did I get any sympathy?! Did anyone say, 'oh poor Draco, let's give him a break since he missed his seventh year being forced to do horrible things in order to stay alive?!' No, of course not. I came back to the school almost the same time you did. Sure, I wasn't running all over the place like you were all the time, but I was still gone for most of it and when I came back I had to take the NEWTs like everyone else!"

"They did extend the NEWTs date for all the seventh years due to the stressful circumstances," Harry said. "So you got an extra month to study. You got to take it a week before graduation, right?"

"Yeah, like that did much," he grumbled. "That test was hard."

Harry smiled softly. "True, but you had been living at least half of what was on the test, using spells and potions. I'm sure you did just fine."

Draco glanced up at him. He shrugged then looked around. "You've got to be kidding me."

The library had ten floors. There were rows and columns of books everywhere, each separated into categories. The ceiling was tall but surprisingly dark. There wasn't much natural light that came into it due to there being no windows. The only light was from the floating chandelier at the very top of the ceiling. It was just a tall fortress of books lined neatly in rows on each "floor". Each "floor" was a round walkway that circled the entire room. Shelves were lined up on the walkway against the wall leaving a couple feet of space to walk. There was a railing around each edge of the walkways. There was a statue of Merlin nearby, large enough to reach from the floor to the half way up the ten walkways for each section. The large hand of Merlin was resting on the ground. When they walked over to it and stood on it, it raised them up to the first walkway.

"I think this first floor of books is potion related so we don't need to check it out," Harry said.

Draco's eyes were wide as he gazed up at the numerous walkways. "So which one do we go to?"

"Not sure. Every time we go up one there should be a sign flashing that tells us what floor it is."

Draco folded his arms and sighed. "Great."

They kept going up by each floor until they reached the eighth floor, which was the Herbology section. Merlin's hand stopped at the beginning of the walkway and they stepped off. There was a large shelf full of books on every inch of the wall that circled the entire walkway. Each walkway was a mile long.

"I guess we should split up," Harry said. "You can take the first half of the book shelves and I'll take the second."

Draco nodded. "All right. Let me know if you find anything."

Harry nodded and then proceeded to walk around until he came to the second half of the walkway. While there were a ton of books, the majority of them were just about past observations and experiments regarding plant life they already knew about. Harry couldn't find anything useful besides what he read in the Archives. If they could find out who found her wand and the recording, perhaps that person kept notes.

After a couple hours of searching, they both came away empty handed. They met back up in the center of the walkway.

"Anything?" Draco asked.

Harry shook his head. "No, but I was thinking we really need to find out who found her wand. Maybe they examined the evidence there and came to some conclusions."

Draco sighed irritably. "The Aurors just kept her wand. None of them found anything. The book I read in the Archives said so."

Harry blinked. He didn't remember reading that part, but then again he was skimming through it.

"Okay. I guess we could talk to Kingsley and ask."

"Like he'd know anything!" Draco exclaimed.

"It's worth a shot," Harry retorted.

They both fell into an uneasy silence.

"This was only our first day of searching. We can't give up yet."

"I'm not!" Draco snapped. "I don't have a choice, do I?"

With that the blond stomped back toward the statue of Merlin. Harry sighed heavily and followed behind him. They both arrived back home in a sour mood. Draco disappeared mumbling that he was going to take a shower. After eating a late lunch, Harry went to the hidden library to see if there was anything there. One book mentioned speculations that this plant was able to camouflage so well that it might never be caught. They speculated that it has probably killed before and would do so again. No one knows if the witch that encountered it and managed to record her own death had been trespassing on its territory or perhaps antagonized it in some way.

It was already nearing five so Harry decided to take a shower and get ready. When he was done, Draco still hadn't come down from his room. Harry relaxed on the couch for a bit and tried to think of a plan for when Voldemort attacked. Nothing was coming to mind. He felt more vulnerable than ever. A little while later Harry left for Cyprian's event. Since Draco hadn't come down yet he hadn't been able to say goodbye, but he knew that Draco was upset he was going. Harry flew by broom a short distance to Hogsmeade. He easily found the area where the new store was opening up. There was a large group of people gathered around. Harry landed and shrunk his broom. Gazing up at the sign he saw it flashing in bright gold: _**Hengist's Shrake Pearl Heirlooms. **_

There was a tray full of drinks and snacks floating around. Harry took a drink and a couple snacks.

"Harry!"

Turning, Harry saw Cyprian waving to him. At first he had a hard time recognizing him. Cyprian was dressed in a thick dark blue velvet robe lined with black. It had one silver button that clipped at the neck where there was a high collar covering his neck. He wasn't wearing glasses this time, probably using an eye potion for the special event. His blue eyes stood out more, especially with the robe. He seemed less enthusiastic than usual. He seemed a bit tired. His light brown wavy hair was longer but slicked back.

"Hey Cyprian," Harry said.

"Glad you could make it," Cyprian said, smiling. "So what do you think of the name?"

"Oh, er, great. So what kinds of things do you sell there?" Harry asked awkwardly.

"Everything from jewelry made from mostly shrake scales, since they look like pearls, hence the name of course, to clothes and some potions. There's a variety of things though from all around the world since my parents travel a lot."

"Wow," Harry said. "Sounds really amazing."

"My parents haven't yet opened it, since they haven't given their welcoming speech. I can give you a private tour before they open it, if you'd like."

"Oh, er, I don't want to get you in trouble," Harry said. "I don't mind waiting."

Cyprian shook his head. "It's no problem. No one will noti—"

"Hey, you Harry Potter?"

They both turned to see a tall lean guy approaching. He had on a deep red, long-sleeved shirt and Demiguise leather pants, pants similar to ones he bought with Draco from the clothes store. Draco mentioned he had a pair as well. They were obviously popular. His brown hair was wavy and a bit messy. His side bangs fell quite a bit over one of his eyes. He was wearing thin-rimmed glasses. The rims were gold, which made his hazel eyes stand out more.

"Er, yeah," Harry said.

The taller boy smiled. He had a perfect smile, almost too perfect. They had probably been magically straightened. He was slightly leaner than Harry, almost built like Neville because of his tall height. He had to be about 6'3'' because he was towering over him and Harry was a little over 5'9''. He was slightly above average height, so thankfully not short, but not tall either. Compared to this guy he felt short.

"Name's Jace," he said. "We haven't officially met but I heard about you coming into our clan."

"Oh, you work for Hellebore too?" Harry asked.

"Yep," he said, cocking his head. "Actually I used to work with your partner, Draco."

Harry's heart nearly stopped in his chest. This guy worked in the same department where Draco had worked previously, the data collection. Draco said that was where he had met his previous boyfriend, the guy who had been his most serious relationship. Was it Jace? The boy was tall and while he was rather lean, he wasn't scrawny. He did seem a little awkward as he kept cocking his head and swinging his hair back which would just fall into his face again.

"Hey Cyprian," Jace said, barely glancing at him. Cyprian just nodded and didn't say a word. "So what are you and Draco doing?"

Harry froze for a split second. What did he mean by that?

"Oh, er, just working on random assignments as they come."

"They both found the rare Blue Snargaluff," Cyprian interjected.

Jace glanced at him briefly before turning back to Harry. "Yeah, I heard about that. Congrats. So how's Draco doing? Is he liking it better than data collecting?"

"Yeah, I think so. He seems to like it," Harry said.

His heart was pounding. If this guy was his ex and he asked to send a message along, or asked to know when Draco was available to catch up, Harry didn't think he would like that. In fact, he was sure he wouldn't like it. Draco obviously broke it off with this guy before they had started going out, but how long ago was it? It had been at least a month or so since Draco had been working that long in the field before Harry joined him. He assumed it had been mutual, but what if it wasn't. What if Draco just broke up with his ex for fear of the vow? If they did manage to break it, would he want to go back to his ex?

"So how do you like it?"

Harry snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, I like it. It's very interesting."

"And dangerous," Jace said, raising an eyebrow.

"Er, yeah, I was thinking more adventurous, but yeah it can be dangerous. We haven't had a lot of dangerous encounters thankfully."

Jace nodded. "That's good. When I heard that you were coming here I thought I'd introduce myself. Hope I wasn't interrupting anything."

It was a little late for that, Harry thought. Cyprian looked a little peeved.

"It's fine. Are you two good friends?" Harry asked, looking between him and Cyprian.

"Not really," Cyprian said. "We do work together frequently though."

"We cross paths at times depending on what we're analyzing," Jace said with a shrug. "I've wanted to meet you ever since the second defeat of the Dark Lord. To tell you the truth, I didn't believe you really defeated him as a baby. I thought it must've been a lucky break. I stopped following you for a while there. I went to Sweden for school. There's a private wizarding school there called Enchantium. It's smaller than Hogwarts, but I really liked it. Anyway, my parents moved to Sweden after the Dark Lord's first defeat, thinking that it wouldn't be safe when all his angry followers decided to take revenge."

Harry just nodded. The guy was sure saying a lot, especially in front of Cyprian.

"Anyway, ever since I heard of that heroic battle at Hogwarts where you took him out all by yourself in front of a bunch of witnesses, well, I was impressed. I couldn't believe it when you started working here. I would've thought the Ministry would've recruited you."

"Well, they tried, but I wasn't interested," Harry said.

Jace smiled. "Interesting. I would've never expected you to end up in Herbology, but I guess it makes sense. After all you've been through, you want something that's far away from what you grew up with. Herbology has its dangerous moments, but nothing compared to what you've faced."

Harry nodded awkwardly. He wasn't sure what to say.

"Well it was nice to finally meet you," he said, holding out his hand. Harry shook it. "Tell Draco I said hi."

"Sure," Harry said.

He watched Jace walk away.

"Do you know him well?" Harry asked curiously.

Cyprian shrugged. "Not really well, but well enough to know that he can be irresponsible. He's got a party side to him, even though he seems like he could be nerdy. He's not completely nerdy. That's why he hasn't moved up from his particular research position in three years."

"What position does he have?"

"He's the data collector. I'm a data analyzer, which is different. I get to experiment with the samples that you find, but he just takes all of our final research conclusions and puts them into books, separating them out by chapters. It's pretty much grunt work, but it's easy money for him. He doesn't want to work harder like being a data analyzer even though it pays more," Cyprian scoffed. "Anyway, let's go in. I think my parents are going to make their speech soon."

Cyprian led him into the new store. It was huge. There were three floors. The first floor had all kinds of exotic and expensive-looking jewelry.

"All of these are made from shrake scales. We can change the color of pearly scales to make various kinds of jewelry. The best part is that Shrakes are magical creatures and the source of which is in their scales. So depending on what people are looking for, we've enhanced the abilities by charming some of the jewelry. Certain ones will glow when danger is near, or others will tingle. Some of them can turn you invisible, just for a few minutes at a time and it takes time to recharge. My favorite are the ones that cause illusions."

"Illusions?" Harry asked.

Cyprian smiled. "You can change into a person, again temporarily, but it's kind of like a lighter version of polyjuice potion."

Harry blinked. "So you can become anyone you think of?"

"Well not exactly. If you want to switch places with someone, they have to buy the same ring or piece of jewelry and say the same enchantment. So it has to be mutual. It would be illegal otherwise. If you're ever interested in trying out anything, you would get half off the original price," he said, smiling.

Harry eyed the jewelry as his mind was spinning. "Yeah…thanks."

After the tour in which Cyprian showed him the second floor, which was all unusual potion remedies from around the world, and the third floor with books and clothes and random souvenirs, they went back outside. Cyprian's father was in the middle of giving a speech about the items they would be selling in the store. His father and mother seemed very high class. They were dressed even nicer than the Malfoys, such as when he saw Lucius and Narcissa with their heads held high in expensive robes and other garments. The father seemed quirky and the mother was rather quiet. Cyprian introduced him to them after the speech. The father wouldn't stop shaking his hand. Others gathered around to shake Harry's hand as well. During that time the dinner trays with light sandwiches and other refreshments came out and Harry was offered a lot of food.

It was a while before he could pull himself away from the chaos. While the people who had been invited were in the store browsing, Cyprian walked with him down the street.

"Thanks for inviting me," Harry said.

"Of course, Harry," Cyprian said, yawning. He seemed worn out.

"Are you going home? You seem tired," he said.

Cyprian smiled. "Are you worried about me, Harry?"

"Uh," Harry blinked. "Sorry if I'm being annoying. You just usually have more energy."

"You're not annoying. Yeah, actually, I have been feeling more tired lately. It hasn't been easy bouncing back from that kidnapping, even though I don't remember any of it. I'm grateful you rescued me and so are my parents. I think that's also why they a bit over the top tonight."

Harry nodded. "Of course. I wouldn't have been able to do it without Draco's help."

Cyprian's smile faded a bit and he nodded. "So are you and Draco getting along?"

"Yeah," Harry said. "We have our moments, but for the most part we do."

Cyprian just nodded. The other boy was silent and deep in thought. He accidentally brushed him arm against Harry's side and for a split second he sensed that Cyprian was nervous. He couldn't tell why.

"So…did they ever catch who attacked you guys?"

Harry blinked. "Oh, well, there are some leads."

He certainly wasn't going to mention Voldemort. All Cyprian knew was that Slughorn had kidnapped them, not Voldemort. If his parents knew that, it would cause massive panic.

Cyprian's anxiety seemed to grow. "Oh, so they're still looking?"

"Yeah," Harry said, eyeing him. "Why?"

"Nothing. I was just curious since your place was sealed off where exactly you're staying. I mean, if you ever need a place my parents' home is very spacious so you're always welcome to stay there."

"Er, thanks, Cyprian. I do have another place to stay other than my apartment though. I'm staying there now and actually I've decided I'm going to move into it permanently. It's already paid off and it's more spacious than an apartment."

Cyprian nodded. "Oh, well that's good."

Harry stopped walking. "Well, I should probably get going. Thanks again."

"Uh, Harry," Cyprian said.

He turned. Cyprian had a hand clenched by his side. He gazed up at Harry once before looking back down.

"Yeah?"

"Well…I was just wondering if…if you were seeing anyone."

Harry's heart skipped a beat. He swallowed nervously. "Oh, er, you mean dating?"

Cyprian looked up at him and nodded.

"Er, yeah, I am," he said, as casually as he could. "Are you?"

Cyprian looked surprised. He shook his head. "No."

"Oh," Harry said. He stood there awkwardly not knowing what else to say. "So I'll see you later then."

Harry turned around and got out his broom.

"Is it Draco?"

Harry froze. He slowly turned around to face Cyprian who was staring at him with a neutral expression. His hand was still clenched by his side.

"Er…yeah," Harry said.

Cyprian's eyes widened and then his eyebrows furrowed a bit.

"It's just…I don't really want that getting out since we're partners. I don't think Dimitri would have a problem with it, but I just don't want it to be awkward at work with everyone knowing. I'd really appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone."

Cyprian was silent for a minute but he nodded slowly. "Of course. That's your personal business, Harry. I wouldn't do that."

Harry smiled. "Thanks. You're a good friend."

Cyprian nodded again and Harry could see the disappointment on his face. Harry felt bad. Cyprian was a nice guy.

"Maybe some time you, me and Ron could hang out, you know, do a rain check for the whole Quidditch night."

Cyprian's expression lightened. "Yeah. That'd be great."

"Well, goodnight," Harry said, waving.

"Goodnight, Harry," Cyprian said. He then turned and walked back toward the new store and disappeared inside.

Sighing, Harry unshrunk his broom.

"So, you're dating huh?"

Harry wheeled around. Jace was standing a distance away leaning up against the wall. He had his arms crossed and his side bangs were blocking his eye. He pushed off against the wall and approached him.

"Were you spying on me?" Harry blurted out.

Jace shrugged. "Not exactly. I saw you and Cyprian leaving together and wondered if you two were an item. That must've been awkward to turn him down, huh? Well, I guess it was more of a subtle turn-down, but same diff."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "He's a friend. I didn't want to hurt his feelings." Harry bit his tongue from snapping that it was none of his business who he dated.

"I figured as much. So how long have you and Draco been together?"

"That's a really personal question and I don't know you," Harry said. "Why do you want to know?"

"Draco's never mentioned me?"

"Not really. I assume you're his ex."  
>Jace grinned. "Yeah. So he did mention me."<p>

"Briefly when we were both talking about our past, but we don't dwell there. The past is the past."

"Ouch," Jace said, stopping in front of him.

"I wasn't meaning that to be rude," Harry lied.

"Hey, it's no problem. I'm just joking around," Jace said. "You're a nice guy. I was just wondering if Draco was being all flaky with you like he was with me."

"Flaky?"

"Yeah, one minute he's fine with making out and being intimate and then the next he just shuts off and distances himself. He kept doing that until one day I confronted him and he told me it wasn't going to work out. Just out of the blue. Even though things had been going well. Just thought I'd warn you."

"Thanks," Harry said. "But I'm not going to judge Draco by what he's done in the past. Everyone changes and he might be different with all sorts of people. If it doesn't work out, then it doesn't, but I don't think your past relationship with him has anything to do with how he is currently."

"Hey, take it or leave it," Jace said, putting his hands up in the air. "I guess I just wondered if it was because of you."

"No, it's not," Harry said. Jace raised an eyebrow. "I know that you guys dated a while ago and me and Draco only started working together a few months ago. We didn't jump into dating right away either."

Jace shrugged. "Guess I thought I'd ask, since I was never really sure why he broke it off. Guess that means it's still a mystery. Though I can understand why he would choose you over anybody."

Harry blinked. "Er, thanks, but that wasn't the case. Sorry things didn't work out between you two."

"No, you're not," Jace said with a grin.

Harry smiled in return. "You're right. I'm not."

Jace laughed. "Well it was nice to meet you, Harry. Tell Drake I said hi anyway. Let him know no hard feelings or anything."

Harry nodded. "I will."

"Just out of curiosity, how long have you two been dating? Has it reached the next level yet?"

Harry felt his face flush. "That's crossing the line."

Jace shrugged. "Yeah, I know. What can I say? I'm blunt. Well, considering that you've only been working at Hellebore for a few months, I take it you probably haven't been dating more than a couple months."

"That's about right. Why?"

Jace grinned widely. "Just curious. Hope to see you around."

With that he Apparated away. Harry jumped on his broom and took off before anyone else could approach him. When he got back to the house Draco was lying on the couch drinking a butterbeer. There was already two empty butterbeers at his feet. Harry walked in and raised his eyebrows. Draco just gazed at him languidly.

"You're back. Wow. Didn't expect you back this early."

Harry rolled his eyes. "It was from six to nine, Draco. Obviously I'd be back around nine."

Draco shrugged and took another sip.

"I see you've had a productive day," Harry said.

Draco snorted. "Completely. So how was it?"

Harry sighed. "Hold on. Let me get a butterbeer."

Draco smirked. "That good, huh?"

"Just wait," Harry said, turning around mid step to hold up a finger. Draco just raised an eyebrow curiously.

Harry walked back into the living room a minute later with a butterbeer. He kicked off his shoes, took off his cloak and lay down on the other couch. He took a swig of butterbeer to Draco's amusement.

"So, come on, tell me what happened?"

"Let's see, well, for the most part it went fine. Even when I met your ex."

Draco nearly choked on his drink. "What? Jace was there?"

"Yeah. I mean the guy's not even friends with Cyprian, from what I gather."

Draco rolled his eyes. "No, but his parents are very influential so it's possible their parents know each other. Maybe his parents made him go to check it out and be supportive and all that crap."

"Maybe," Harry said. "He seems nice. He says hi."

"Really? That's weird."

"Actually it gets weirder."

Draco stared at him curiously.

"He kind of found out we're dating."

Draco smirked. "Did you announce it from the rooftops?"

Harry glared. "No. I was…in an awkward position," he said, hesitating. He glanced at Draco. "I think Cyprian was going to ask me out."

"That bugger! I knew he liked you!" Draco exclaimed, sitting up. "What did you say?"

"I'm home by nine, what do you think I said?" Harry retorted sarcastically.

Draco snorted. "Funny."

"He didn't blatantly ask me out, but I sensed it was coming. He asked if I was seeing anyone."

"That's basically asking you out."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said, sighing. "So I told him I was and he asked if I was dating you, so I told him yes. And of course Jace was spying on us and I didn't even realize it so he overheard the whole thing."

"Sounds like him," Draco murmured.

Harry glanced at him. "Yeah, er, Jace at first thought you broke up with him because of me. I told him that wasn't the case. He knows we didn't start working together until a few months ago."

"I broke up with him long before that. It's been like six months."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I figured. He seemed cool about it. From what he said, he just was confused about you suddenly breaking things off when he thought things were going well. I think he just wanted closure, you know, knowing exactly why you broke up."

"I doubt that," Draco said. "I mean he can figure it out. Obviously if it wasn't to date someone else then it's obviously because I didn't want to date him anymore. He was probably just trying to test you to see if you would be intimidated by him."

"Intimidated to do what? Say, 'hey sure, you can have Draco back.' That's your choice and if you didn't want to date him there's nothing he can do about it," Harry said.

"He's just grooming his ego. At least if he convinces himself that I broke up with him for you, he could probably understand given your reputation."

"Yeah, he did say something like that," Harry said.

Draco snorted. "He's predictable as ever."

"The one thing that made me uncomfortable was he wanted to know how long we had been dating and…," he trailed off.

"And?" Draco asked, raising an eyebrow.

"And if we've reached the next level."

"Of course he did. The guy's ego has obviously been wounded," he said, snorting. "He's just pissed 'cause I didn't go all the way with him. He's wondering if I've gone all the way with you."

"Why?"

"Because if I have gone all the way with you, his pride would be hurt and he'd think it's because he's not as attractive or whatever. You know, it's just an ego thing."

"Sounds like he may be still into you," Harry said.

Draco turned his head and smirked. "Would you be jealous if he was?"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Should I be jealous? I assume you breaking up with him means you're not really that interested in him."

Draco's smirk widened. "So how did Cyprian handle the rejection?"

"He seemed disappointed but he seemed to understand. I felt bad. I told him he could hang out with me and Ron some time."

"Oh the pity get-together. That does wonders for the pride."

"Shut-up!" Harry said, flinging a pillow at him.

Draco just smirked. They lay in silence for several minutes. Harry took another swig of butterbeer. He was half way done with his drink. He was staring up at the ceiling deep in thought. Just then he heard Draco move. A minute later the blond was kneeling on the couch beside him. Draco leaned over him so their faces were lined up.

"You sure you're not jealous?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Are you jealous of Cyprian?"

Draco smirked and stared at him. They stared at each other for a minute before Draco leaned down and pressed their lips together. Harry had already placed one hand over his head just resting it there. Draco grabbed his other hand and placed it above his head with the other one. He held both of Harry's hands above his head and then positioned his body so both his legs were on either side of Harry's body. Draco then leaned back down and kissed him. Harry attempted to move his hands but couldn't. Draco moved his lips gently over his. Harry could feel his heart racing.

Draco took his hands away from Harry's to reach down and unbutton Harry's shirt. He pushed the shirt open to expose his bare chest. Draco kissed down his neck and to his chest. Harry felt goosebumps rise on his skin. His stomach was fluttering with the exciting sensation he had felt before when being intimate with him. Draco kissed his way back up to Harry's lips. He parted his lips and allowed Draco's tongue inside. They spared for a bit and Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck, bringing him closer. Their moist lips broke and Harry felt Draco's hand moving down to his pants.

Harry's heart fluttered as Draco unbuttoned his pants and slid them off. He reached for his boxers, but Harry stopped him. The blond glanced up at him.

"If I can't see your tattoo before we have sex, you don't get to see me naked," Harry said, smiling.

Draco raised both eyebrows. "Fine. Then let's have sex."

Harry's breath caught in his throat. He felt his heart skip a beat. Even though his body was becoming aroused, he wasn't sure it was the best night.

"Maybe not tonight. We have to discuss something first that's going to ruin the mood."

Draco slowly lifted himself off of him. "What is it?"

"I think I have a plan against Voldemort, but I need your help figuring out how we're going to make it work."

Draco's eyes widened. He nodded. "All right. What's the plan?"

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note:** Muhahaha! I keep teasing you guys with the sex. I know, I know. I promise you won't have to wait much longer. =) I will update asap!

_**TO REVIEWERS: **_

**DeiStarr**: Yay! I'm glad you liked it! Hopefully you liked this chapter! Not too much happened in this chapter, but I did foreshadow a few things that are important. I promise more steamy moments soon! And hopefully your computer is fixed. I'm sure you've become a pro at using your phone though, lol! Yes, life definitely gets in the way at times. I hope not to take as long in updating this next chapter! So I will update asap!

**bbbreeex**: Awww, thanks so much! I'm glad you like my writing! Yep, more steamy moments to come! I know I'm teasing you will the building romance, but I promise it will be worth the wait! You won't have to wait too long and I usually try and put something in to satisfy, lol! I will update asap!

**thefeyrabbit**: Awww, it's okay. Thanks for reviewing now. Better late than never, right? =) I'm so glad you really like this! I'm glad to hear it's one of your favorites. That makes me very happy! I hope you continue to enjoy it! I promise to update soon!

**mochiusagi**: Glad you're liking this! =) Lol! Yes, they did heat up! More steamy moments to come! =) Yeah, they haven't had much good luck with dragons so far, lol! They aren't the friendliest creatures. Hehe! I will update asap!

**kistenbabe**: Awww, thanks so much! That makes me very happy! I'm trying to make it the best Harry/Draco story ever! That's my goal. I want it better than my Captivation series. Right now I actually like it better than any Draco/Harry story I've written so far. Yes, I absolutely agree! I can't stand writing let alone reading stories where the characters get together right away, especially ones like Draco and Harry who were rivals and enemies before. My stories always have to feel believable to me or I don't enjoy writing them. I appreciate the feedback! Hopefully you will continue to enjoy it! More romance/steamy moments to come! And I promise to update asap! =)

**StubbornBlonde**: Yes, steamy moments are great! Sorry for the tease in this chapter! They have to get down to business but promise more to come! =) Hopefully school and everything is going better now that you've gotten into the flow again. Yeah it's hard juggling all those things. I feel your pain! Lol! I will update asap!

**MblaqSarang**: Awww, thanks! Don't worry it won't be put on Hiatus. Promise! I'm still updating regularly, just some updates might take longer than I want. I try to keep it within 2 weeks, due to work and studying. But don't worry I always post on my profile when something gets delayed and I usually don't take too much longer to post. =) Thanks so much! Glad you like it! I will update asap!

**idreamofdrarry**: Lol! Glad you liked the shower scene! Lol! Yes, steamy, haha! I get it! I promise more moments to come and of course the building sex scenes, lol! Thanks so much for understanding about updating. Yeah, I have to study again. I didn't pass at least one part of the test. The other part I'm still waiting on the results so studying will have to happen again, but I will still update the same. =) I'm so glad you're still liking it. Hopefully this chapter was still just as good, even though not much happened. I did foreshadow a few things though that will be important. Yeahhhhh, talking to Ron, keep that in mind because that will happen soon enough. Sorry for teasing you again! I know the sex is building, but I promise it will be worth the wait. I just don't see them, especially Harry, jumping into it. Neither of them are very experienced and they're still bonding so it will come shortly, don't worry! I promise not to torture you too much longer. Yep! The tattoo will come too. Hehe! Yay! I'm so glad you liked the dragon scenes. Yep, Harry being an Animagus is fun to play with. There will be more about that later. Hopefully you feel better about Cyprian now. Thanks again! I love and appreciate all your feedback! I promise to update asap! Hopefully if I'm awesome it will be by this coming up Sunday.

**Guest**: Lol! Yeah, Harry has no right to look into Draco's mind, but he's doing it anyway because he's suspicious. =) I'm glad you love the story! Thanks!

**Carling****:** Thanks so much for going back and giving me your feedback on past chapters! I'm glad you're all caught up. Wow! Well I'm so glad it was interesting enough to keep you up so late! Hopefully you've caught up on sleep now. =) Aww, good! I'm glad that you think my style has grown more fluid. I think it depends on the chapter too sometimes. The dialogue is easier than some of the action scenes. I hope my style continues to grow and hopefully the story will keep developing for the better. Awww, no worries, your critique is most helpful! I'm glad you enjoyed the "journey", hehe! Yes, I know exactly what you mean about intimate scenes. LoL! I laughed so hard when I read your comment about it being like an anatomy textbook. It's so true! It's almost like people think if they just say the parts that works instead of putting the feeling and passion and romance into the scenes. You really have to feel it to let it come across. I'm so glad that you're okay with them. The sex scenes later on will be a bit graphic, but I promise they won't be gross or anything. It will still have all the love and romance that I've been showing. I'm an old fashioned girl too. I can't have sex without the romance (for my characters or myself, lol!).

I'm so glad that you like the backstory about Voldemort. It will start to build. I foreshadowed a few things in this chapter that may not be apparent until later. Hopefully the action/adventure doesn't overrun the romance, because while I want the story to be an exciting adventure/mystery/suspense, the romance is the main genre running through. So let me know if you ever feel the romance getting overpowered. I'm so glad that my plot is unique too. I would hope so since I made it up but sometimes if you read a lot you don't notice when certain ideas grow from things you've read. Thankfully I hadn't read fanfiction or HP in a while. Yay! I'm so happy it's now your favorite career for them! I think it is for me too right now! Lol! Yes, so true! Cyprian is a little like Colin Creevey. =) I never thought of it that way.

Aww, you have a daughter? How old is she? Wow! That's got to be busy juggling so many responsibilities. That makes it all the more special that you take time to review my story! Wow! That's such a big compliment you gave me about Harry's outcome being more realistic than the canon. Thanks! I do agree with you. I was a bit disappointed by the seventh book. The huge battle between Voldie and Harry that I was expecting (and that had been building since book one) never really happened. And then everything after the battle wasn't really explained so you were left with so many questions and a real big time jump.

I'm so sorry to hear that you've had an abusive background. It's so disheartening to know that people get hurt all the time like that. I'm glad you're happy now (or at least I assume you are, hopefully you are!). I suppose in some ways then you have a stronger attachment to Harry than Draco. I'm glad you noticed the subtle emotional connections going on through the beginning. =)

Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter just as much! I promise to update asap! Thanks again for taking such thorough time to review and offer me critiques and your feelings on it. It helps so much! =)


	18. Arising Suspicions

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note:** **The sex is coming up soon guys**! I know you've been very patient with me. It just has to feel like the right time for them. It will most likely be next chapter. =) So BE PREPARED! Hehehehehe! Enjoy!

**Chapter 17: Arising Suspicions **

Harry woke up the next morning feeling anxious. He and Draco had a lengthy discussion the night before about the plan. He knew it was dangerous, and he was worried that Draco wouldn't want to do it. To his surprise, Draco thought the idea might actually work. The idea itself was rather basic, a fairly uncomplicated plan for such a strategic enemy, but they had Snape's potion on their side. If Voldemort couldn't use Legilmency to read their minds, especially since he was in a weak state anyway, they had the upper hand. Harry hoped that Voldemort would only have enough strength for one move. If Voldemort had found a way to permanently fix his dying body, the plan wouldn't be as effective because Voldemort would quickly figure it out. He hoped that Voldemort couldn't find a permanent solution. He had obviously been killing Dementors to keep up his strength, but that was temporary. So long as Voldemort was too weak to do much else, he only had once chance to get Harry. That's what they needed.

By the time Harry had gotten up, showered and dressed and went down to the kitchen, Draco was there. He was cleaning his hands of soot with his wand when Harry walked in.

"What happened?" he asked.

"The secure owl kept trying to get in and managed to get stuck in one of the fire places. Thankfully the house still had its defense mechanisms active so it's not like Vo-You-Know-Who can get in that way. A shield was activated which prevented it from being able to escape the fireplace hence why I'm all covered in soot."

Harry raised an eyebrow and then stared at the envelope with wings which fluttered over to him and hovered in front of his face.

"How did you even know it was there?"

"Surprisingly they make noise when they're in distress," Draco drawled.

Harry opened the letter and read it. He glanced up at Draco with an apologetic look.

"What is it?" he asked, exasperated.

"Er, well, it's a letter from Ron. He came back into town because apparently Hermione's got some time to hang out today and it's the only day right now for a while so..."

Draco rolled his eyes. "What the hell? What's another day of postponing Dimitri's assignment? It's not like there's a due date."

Despite what he was saying, he sounded annoyed.

"I'm sorry. I promise we'll start it tomorrow."

Draco shrugged. He began eating his breakfast again. Harry inwardly sighed. The blond could be way too stubborn sometimes. Harry decided not to eat breakfast since he was meeting Ron and Hermione for an early lunch. Instead he left Draco to brood and went up to his room to take out their "secret weapon" for the plan. He hoped it was enough. Just staring at it made him feel as if it was like using a toothbrush against Voldemort instead of a wand.

Sighing, Harry put it away. He went downstairs and saw Draco lying on the couch drinking a Nettle juice. He was surprised it wasn't a butterbeer considering what they had to discuss the other night.

"I'll be back in a little while," Harry said.

"Mmm," Draco said, nonchalantly. He took a gulp of his drink.

Harry rolled his eyes. He left and flew to meet Ron and Hermione at the The Aconite Lounge in Hogsmeade. He saw Ron and Hermione sitting at a table outside. Hermione waved to him as he landed.

"Hey Harry!" Hermione exclaimed. She got up and hugged him tightly. "It's been so long."

"Yeah, it has," Harry said, smiling. "How has mediwitch school been going?"

"Really well," she said. "I get to shadow specialty doctors from St. Mungo's."

"She's the top of her class, of course," Ron said, nodding. "Of course that also means she'll be even busier."

"It's just until schooling is done," she said, patting his hand. "Once I'm doing after next year I'll only have to focus on my job and not juggling both. I am the first person in over a century to get the privilege of shadowing when my first year isn't even completed. Normally, the top students of the school get shadowing opportunities at the end of their second year, since it's the last year."

"Wow! That's amazing," Harry said. "I'm not surprised. So what kind of specialties will you be shadowing?"

"Oh, it's so fascinating! I get to shadow three different areas of specialties: there's the severe skin and dermatological diseases, the rare ones caused by plants or allergic reactions to rare breeds of beasts. Then I get to shadow the fertility clinic, for those who can't have children either due to severe hexes or nasty potion mess-ups, to even those who survived the first and second Dark Wars as consequences of attacks. The last one I'll be shadowing are severe memory impairments and cognitive issues due to toxic potion combinations."

"Sounds very thorough," Harry said.

Hermione smiled. "It is. I'm very excited! So how is work going for you?"

"Yeah, with Malfoy," Ron said while making a face.

"It's going good," Harry said. He swallowed and felt as though there was a lump in his throat. "We got a new assignment already but I put it on hold so I could see you guys."

Ron gave him an exasperated look. "Why couldn't you have done that for Quidditch night?"

Harry inwardly winced. "Er, well, after you got so upset when that happened, I had a talk with Draco and we figured out that for assignments that aren't pressing we could postpone them if we both agreed."

Ron opened his mouth but Hermione interrupted.

"Well that's good. I'm glad you two are getting along. It sounds like Draco's matured."

"Malfoy. His name is Malfoy!" Ron exclaimed. "We're not on a friendly first-name basis with him."

Hermione gave him a look. "He and Harry are partners now, Ron. We all have to grow up some time."

Ron glared at her. "I don't care how old we get, 'Mione, the guy was a nightmare and I'm never calling him anything but Malfoy!"

Harry sighed. "All right. Fine. Let's change the subject."

They all ordered their food and drinks. Harry ordered a stronger drink, Zeus' Elixir that had Rum Lightening in it. He remembered the drink he had tried with Draco when they were at the resort. It also had Rum Lightning in it and he realized he really liked the taste. It was a little bit sweet, but very subtle and made his whole mouth and throat tingle as it went down. Harry smiled when his drink landed in front of him. Ron was staring at it wide-eyed.

"That looks bloody wicked!"

Harry glanced at the charmed lightning sizzling every few seconds from his glass. Of course how it looked was the best part.

"I know. I tried this when I was with Dr—I mean on one of our assignments we came across an Inn that had it."

Hermione glanced at him curiously. Harry quickly took a sip. The lightning lit up his mouth and then vanished down his throat.

"I'm getting one of those too," Ron said.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You both can be such typical guys sometimes."

Ron rubbed his hands together in excitement when his drink arrived.

"So Ron, how's dragon training going with Nagae?"

"Really good. He's finally learning not to jump up on me, or crawl on me."

Harry winced at the memory of the baby dragon in the Onyx Dragon lair climbing up on him.

"He's gotten bigger but he's still not old enough to use his flames though. When he gets upset smoke just billows out of his nose."

Harry smiled and Hermione laughed.

"He sounds adorable. I wish I could've met him," she said.

"He is," Harry agreed.

"Yeah. But everyone misses you. They want you and…_Malfoy_ to come back sometime," Ron said with hesitation.

"Yeah we'll have to visit sometime."

"You guys can come to the championship match! It's not for another few months. It's at the end of August. It's a big competition that we go to where dragon trainers from all over the world compete for the national title of the Ultimate Dragon Trainer. There are other awards you can get throughout the competition like Most Creative Dragon Trainer or Best Airflips, but the champion of the entire match gets the Ultimate Dragon Trainer title. It's one of the most amazing things ever. I might be able to compete if Nagae gets his flames in time and if I can teach him some really awesome tricks! Of course, I'll be competing with other amateurs in the amateur level of the championship but if I do compete, I want you both to be there!"

"I'll be done ahead of time with all my first year requirements so I can take some time off to come see you," Hermione said.

"Yeah, er, as long as Voldemort doesn't capture me I'm sure I can go."

Ron and Hermione gave him a terrified look.

"Harry, don't joke about that," Hermione said.

"I'm not really," Harry murmured. "I mean, I don't know when he'll strike, but me and Draco have a plan."

"You and _Malfoy_ are working _together_ against his former mentor?" Ron blurted out.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Look, Ron, I get you don't like him and I get he was a pain in the ass in school, but he never wanted to join Voldemort's forces. Besides, he's in as much danger as I am so we're stronger in numbers."

"Two isn't much better than one," Ron muttered.

Hermione nudged him. "Cut it out, Ron. If Draco's –"

"Malfoy!"

"—willing to help Harry then we should be supportive. It's better to have as many people as possible helping out. Have you heard anything from your dad?"

"Not really. Same old news. Dementors have gone missing. No one knows what Voldie's up to."

Harry raised an eyebrow. Ron stopped saying You-Know-Who but he couldn't say Voldemort's full name so instead he used the nickname Harry created. If Voldemort ever knew about his nickname, he'd no doubt torture him endlessly.

"Although my dad did say he saw Malfoy and Harry together at the Ministry," Ron said, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Yeah, er, we were checking out the Ministry Library."

"You showed him the secret library?!" Ron exclaimed.

"We needed to do some research for an assignment, Ron. It's not like there's anything there that he could use."

"There could be dark arts books down there!"

Harry bit his lip. He certainly couldn't tell them that he found a dark arts book in Draco's possession or explain what he was going to do with it. In fact, if his friends found out that he was helping Draco with a dark arts ritual, regardless of the reason, he was sure they'd send him to St. Mungo's. Harry realized that if Kingsley found out too, there might be consequences. He swallowed a large gulp of his drink and nearly choked on the lightening as it zapped his uvula.

"You okay?" Hermione asked.

Harry cleared his throat. "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry, Ron, I was with him the whole time. We only checked out Herbology books."

Ron muttered something under his breath and took a sip of his drink. "Wow, this is good." He drank more of it and Harry watched the lightning crackle as it went into his mouth.

"Hey, how's Cyprian?" Ron asked.

"Oh, he's fine. I just saw him recently at the opening of his parents' new store."

"He sounds nice, from what Ron described," Hermione said. "I'm glad you met a new friend."

Harry forced a smile. "Yeah. Oh that reminds me, I did tell him that we could do another Quidditch night sometime."

Ron shrugged. "Sure. I don't think another big match comes up for another six months. Then there's the World Championships."

Harry nodded. "Okay."

He felt his insides squirm. There was a part of him that wanted to tell his friends about what was going on and ask their opinions about what to do.

"Oh, by the way I just wanted you to know that Ginny is dating someone."

Harry blinked. "Oh, good for her."

"Ron, you're supposed to put it delicately," Hermione said.

"It's okay, really. Me and Ginny are just friends now. I'm happy for her," Harry said.

"She asked how you were doing the other day. Charlie and I stopped by the house first when we got back and she knows you and Malfoy were coming to stay with us for a bit. She thinks it's weird you two are partners too."

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed.

Harry shrugged. "I know it's weird, but it's actually gotten a lot better."

Ron gave him a look then he stood up. "I have to go to the bathroom. Be right back."

Harry nervously took a sip of his drink once Ron left. Hermione was the more rational of the two.

"You okay, Harry? You seem a bit more quiet than usual," Hermione said, staring at him with concern.

"I'm fine," Harry said quickly.

Hermione's eyebrows furrowed. "Harry, are you sure there's nothing bothering you? You look worried. Is it Voldemort?"

Swallowing thickly, Harry glanced at the entrance of the restaurant where Ron had disappeared. He probably only had a few minutes.

Harry leaned forward and rubbed his face. "There is…something I want to tell you, but I have no idea how and I don't want Ron to know because he's already gotten pissed at me. He'll probably never want to be friends so you have to promise not to tell him."

Hermione leaned forward looking concerned. "Okay. I mean, you'd tell him eventually right, whatever it is?"

Harry nodded. "Eventually. I do need to talk to someone but we don't have much time. The thing is…"

He glanced up at her and Hermione stared at him expectantly.

"It's about Draco."

"Okay. What is it? Has he done something wrong?"

Harry opened his mouth and then closed it. He inhaled deeply. "We're sort of…," he hesitated. Hermione stared at him. "We're sort of together," he finally got out.

Hermione stared at him for a minute in confusion. Harry stared back feeling his cheeks heat up. Suddenly, her eyes widened.

"Wait, when you say together, you mean –"

"I feel much better," Ron said as he walked out of the restaurant back toward his seat.

Hermione's mouth was open. Ron noticed it as he pulled out his chair.

"What's going on? What did I mi—"

"Ron, go back inside and wash your hands!" Hermione exclaimed.

"What? But I already did with my wand."

"Go wash them the proper way!" she snapped.

"But it's the same—"

"Ronald Weasley, get back in there and wash your hands without using magic," she said, pointing her finger in the direction of the restaurant.

Ron stared at her wide-eyed. He opened his mouth and glanced at Harry who quickly busied himself with taking a large gulp of his drink. Muttering under his breath, Ron stomped back inside. Hermione wheeled her head around back toward him.

"All right, Harry, we maybe have five minutes now talk fast!"

Harry nodded. "Me and Draco started working together and we just sort of bonded. We saved each other's lives. I got to know him better and his family has been trying to control him forever. He's been trying to get away. And it just sort of happened."

"How does something like that just happen?! Especially with someone like Draco Malfoy?" she whispered.

"I don't know, he sort of kissed me one day and we kind of slowly started dating –"

"Dating?!" Hermione squeaked. Her eyes were large and round as she stared at him in shock. "Harry are you sure that it's not…?"

Harry suddenly realized what she was getting at. "No, no, I promise no magic is involved. If it were a love potion I'd be all lovey dovey and talking about Draco every five minutes as if my life depended on it."

Hermione stared at him for a minute. "But Harry, I mean – are you even…you know?"

"Gay?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow. "No, I don't think so. I mean I've never been attracted to guys before, and I'm still not attracted to guys as far as I know, except for Draco."

Hermione opened her mouth but Ron suddenly appeared again.

"There! You happy?" he grumbled.

Hermione nodded toward him and then stared at Harry. Ron looked back and forth between them.

"Is something going on?"

"No, it's nothing," Hermione said, forcing a smile. "Actually, I was thinking that since we have all day today and I have to go back tomorrow, how about we all have dinner together?"

"Sure," Ron said. "I'm sure my mum would love to cook for us, especially you, Harry. Everyone misses you."

Harry smiled. "Thanks. That sounds great."

"And you can invite Draco," Hermione said.

Ron spit out his drink across the table. Thankfully Harry was sitting across from Hermione so it didn't reach him.

"WHAT?!" Ron bellowed. "Are you insane?! No bloody way!"

"Stop making a scene!" Hermione exclaimed. "Look, Harry and Draco are partners. That means we can't ignore the fact that we'll see Draco from time to time."

"He's the enemy!" Ron argued.

"Yes, but you keep your friends close and your enemies closer," she retorted.

Ron gapped at her. "You've got to be joking?! Besides, he wouldn't want to come to my house. He's always made fun of it!"

"Ron, you know your house has been fixed up. It's much better," Harry said. "Besides, I thought you didn't care what he thought."

"Doesn't matter! He'll ruin the night!"

Hermione elbowed him hard in the ribs. "Ron! We're inviting him!" she snapped.

"No way am I—"

Hermione elbowed him again and then glared at him.

"We are Harry's friends. We need to be supportive. You were around Draco in Australia and you even told me that he wasn't obnoxious like in school."

"He was _tolerable_! That doesn't mean I want him hanging around my house."

"Grow up!"

Harry sat back and watched them argue for a minute before Hermione gave him her intimidating glare. Ron finally slumped back in his seat and crossed his arms.

"That sounds great," Harry said finally. "So…what time?"

Ron was staring away with his arms crossed not speaking.

"Let's say 7," Hermione said.

Ron glared at her. Harry just nodded awkwardly. "Okay. I'll let Draco know then. And you're right, Ron, he might not want to come."

"I hope not," Ron muttered.

"Tell him we would like to put the past behind us and it would be nice for all of us to just start fresh," Hermione interjected.

Ron opened his mouth in horror but Hermione sent him another glare. Harry stared at her for a minute. He sensed she was anxious. Perhaps she was putting on a polite face and trying to make nice with Draco for Harry's sake.

Harry nodded. "I'll tell him. So I'll see you guys later then."

"Bye, Harry," Hermione said, smiling. There was something off about her smile. It didn't quite reach her eyes.

Ron just muttered his bye. Harry took off feeling anxious. Telling Hermione hadn't gone as bad as it would've with Ron, but from what he sensed she wasn't really fine with it. Hermione was a lot more polite and composed than Ron was, but he knew deep down Hermione wasn't comfortable with the idea of Draco becoming part of their group either. That thought saddened him. He sighed heavily. He knew it would take some getting used to. Hopefully his friends would eventually accept the idea.

He arrived back home to see Draco had fallen asleep on the couch. He had one knee bent up resting against the back of the couch and the other leg, closer to the edge, was lying straight. He had one arm resting above his head on the plush arm rest of the couch while the other was lying across his torso. He was wearing a loose black t-shirt and his thin sweatpants. His t-shirt was crumpled so part of his abdomen was showing. Draco's head was leaning off to the side and his blond bangs fell to one side over his eye. A wave of arousal struck him as he stared at the sleeping blond. He flushed when the thought that Draco looked rather beautiful crossed his mind.

Harry walked toward the couch, gazing down at him. He sat down beside the blond, pressing his side up against him but Draco didn't budge. He debated internally for a couple minutes before he bent down. He slowly touched his lips to Draco's. They were smooth and warm. The blond groaned in his sleep and instinctively closed his mouth over his. Harry felt their lips detach as he pulled back up. Draco's hand that was above his head came down as he adjusted his position slightly. Harry smiled and then reached out a hand and nudged him.

Draco moaned and began to turn. He couldn't turn completely over since Harry was blocking his way. The blond's eyes opened and he looked up at him in confusion.

"What the – what time is it?" Draco asked groggily. He began to push himself up on his elbows. His hair was in disarray.

Harry was going to answer but suddenly bent forward and pressed their lips together firmly. Draco made a sound as his body collapsed back down. Harry moved his lips over the blond's and rested his chest against his. Draco's hands moved up into his hair, pushing him closer. Their lips made a sound as they detached. Harry attempted to pull himself back up, but Draco pulled him back down. He began to push on Harry's legs to get him to fully get on the couch. Harry made a noise in the back of his throat.

He broke away momentarily to kick off his shoes. Their faces were inches apart and their eyes were locked together. Harry adjusted his position so he was lying down on top of him. Draco pressed on the back of his head as he tilted his head up. Harry felt their lips meet. The blond parted his lips through the kiss and ran his hand up through Harry's hair. Harry also parted his lips. Their lips moved passionately together. Harry tilted his head for a better angle and Draco slipped his tongue in his mouth. Their tongues slid together and Harry put in his arms underneath Draco to wrap around his neck and shoulders. Draco's hand trailed down to his hip and began raising his shirt up. His fingers lightly trailed up Harry's bare back making goosebumps appear.

Harry made a content sound in the back of his throat before he broke the kiss. "Would you be willing to go to dinner tonight?"

Draco opened his eyes and raised an eyebrow. "I don't mind. Why wouldn't I be willing? You don't embarrass me that much in public."

Harry gave him a look. "Hilarious. Actually it –"

Draco pushed him down for a kiss. After a lengthy kiss in which Harry moved his lips on top of Draco's firmly, he finally broke away again.

"It would be over at Ron's."

Draco had been centimeters from pressing their lips together. He suddenly stopped.

"What? Why the hell would I want to go to Weasel's house?!"

"Because my friends invited us," Harry said.

Draco unwound his hands from around him and rolled his eyes as he lay his head back down.

"No bloody way, Potter."

Harry glared at him partly for being stubborn and partly for calling him Potter.

"I'm going to take a shower so get off me," Draco said, attempting to get up.

"Draco, just hear me out for one second," Harry said, sitting up. "Please."

Draco sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. "Fine."

"Look. There's something you should know."

The blond stared at him firmly. "And what's that?"

Harry bit his lip. "I sort of told Hermione about us."

Draco's mouth parted open in shock. "You – does that – I mean, does Weasel know?"

Harry shook his head. "No. And I told her not to tell him and Hermione's good at keeping her word. I think this is an attempt on her part to really get to know you, you know, be supportive of us being together."

"Great," Draco muttered. "So she's plotting my death."

"Be serious."

"I am," Draco said. "I wouldn't put it past her. She probably thinks I've put you under a spell or something."

"No, she doesn't. She's smart. She knows if I were under a love potion I'd be all googley-eyes for you and talking about you all the time," Harry argued. "This is a good thing. If my friends start to accept us going out, slowly but surely, then it will make things so much easier. We won't have to keep sneaking around off on vacations."

"I haven't been sneaking around," Draco said, eyeing him. "Have you?"

Harry winced. "Well…"

Draco crossed his arms and sat up straight. "Potter, spill."

"Stop calling me that! I thought we were passed that," Harry said.

"Fine," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "_Harry_."

Harry took a breath. "Ron had invited me out to have a Quidditch night with him which happened to be the same time you had gotten us reservations at the resort."

Draco raised both eyebrows. "You chose me over him?"

"Well, I – I mean," Harry said, flushing, "you had asked me first so it was only fair."

Smirking, Draco uncrossed his arms. "Really? Is that all?" he drawled. "What about the fact that you two were fighting?"

"I already chose to go with you before then. That's when I lied to Ron about us having an assignment and that's why I couldn't go. He found out we were partners and blew up at me so after that I really wanted to get out of town."

The blond sighed. "I don't know. I don't really want to be interrogated by your friends."

"If this is a serious relationship, we can't hide from my friends forever. Or your family," Harry added. He really dreaded Lucius and Narcissa finding out about them.

Draco winced at the mention of his family. "What's the point in me going if Weasley doesn't know anyway?"

"Because they can get to know you better and see that you're not as terrible as you were in school," Harry said as Draco glared at him. "Ron's already spent some time with you so you just need to be on your best behavior so you can get on his good side."

"No! I'm not bloody going out of my way to please him of all people!" Draco snapped.

"Stop being so stubborn! Look, it's a get-together so you don't have to spend time with him much or not at all."

"Great, that makes it better," Draco said. He slid his legs off the couch and stood up.

Harry licked his lips and shrugged. "Well, I mean, if we both go and things go pretty well, maybe when we get back we can finish what we started."

Draco turned around and stared at him. Harry was still seated on the couch. He had trouble meeting the blond's gaze.

"Are you suggesting what I think you are?"

Harry shrugged nervously. "I'm just saying that it would mean a lot to me if you went."

Draco stared at him for a minute. His lips curled into a smirk. "Are you bribing me with sex?"

"I never said that," Harry said. "I just said we can pick up where we left off. Besides, you're bribing me by saying I can't see your tattoo until we have sex."

Draco snorted. He was silent for a minute and his smirk faded. "Fine. I'll go. I can't promise it's going to go smoothly. I have no control over Weasel's psychotic episodes."

Harry laughed. "Yeah. I'm not expecting miracles."

Draco studied him for a minute. Harry felt the blond's eyes move up and down as he did so. Harry felt his cheeks heat up.

"I'm going to take a shower and get dressed. What time do we have to be there?"

"Not till 7. I'm going to go check on them upstairs," Harry said, referring to the plan they discussed the previous night.

Draco nodded and then walked toward the stairs. Harry followed him up to his bedroom. Draco opened his bedroom door and then turned to look over his shoulder.

"You could join me," he said, smirking.

"You're not getting any kind of reward beforehand," Harry retorted. "Then you won't have any motivation to go to dinner."

Draco shrugged. He smirked again and then disappeared into his bedroom. Harry stared at the closed door for a minute. His heart was racing. It was very possible they would have sex tonight. He was nervous and he wasn't sure if that would change things between them for better or for worse. Harry turned and walked toward the attic. The door blended into the wall so it was barely noticeable. Harry walked in and opened the cupboard. Inside was the quartz container with the Onyx Dragon's brilliant white flames. Right next to it was a small bottle filled with a little bit of the white flames and the weapon they were going to use against Voldemort. Getting some of the flame out had been tricky. They had to puncture a hole in the quartz container and then seal it up again. The weapon was sitting in the bottle with the white flames. Harry was hoping that the white flames would empower it even more. Unfortunately they wouldn't know until they tried it. There was no way to know if it would fool Voldemort.

Harry gazed at the bottle. When it was time, he would say a spell that would allow the flames to be engulfed by the weapon. He wasn't sure how long the flames would last, but he knew the weapon would only last an hour at a time with the spell that activated it. Hopefully the flames would make it last at least twice as long. The only problem was timing it out right. They would have to wait until they knew Voldemort would attack.

A few hours later, Harry was in his room. He had decided to take a nap. After watching Draco sleeping so peacefully on the couch it had seemed like a great idea. A knock came at his door.

"Come in," Harry said.

Draco stepped into his room and snorted when he saw him lying on the bed.

"I see you're ready to go."

"Shut-up," Harry grumbled. "It wouldn't be fair if you got to take a nap and I didn't."

The blond crossed his arms. "Yeah, well, get up. Let's get this over with."

Harry sighed and got off the bed. He fixed his clothes with a simple spell and the two of them took off to Ron's house. They both approached the door. He could tell Draco seemed nervous. Harry knocked once and to his surprise Ginny answered the door.

"Harry! It's so good to see you!" she exclaimed. She then glanced at Draco. "Draco, nice to see you too."

Draco nodded politely.

"Come on in."

They both entered the house. They could hear voices in the other room.

"They're here!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Oh great, now everyone's present," Mrs. Weasley said. "I'll get dinner on the table. Harry, dear, so nice to see you," she said, suffocating him in a hug.

She then smiled at Draco and held out a hand. "Nice seeing you again, Draco, under better circumstances."

The blond shook her hand awkwardly. "Yeah," he said quietly.

When they walked into the living room area they saw Charlie, Ron, a guy Harry didn't recognize, Ginny, Hermione and Mr. Weasley.

"Percy is at work tonight and Bill and his family were busy," Mrs. Weasley said. "I have to go to the kitchen and put the food on the table. Feel free to make yourselves at home."

Harry and Draco stood there awkwardly.

"See, it's not so bad," Harry whispered.

Draco turned and gave him a look.

"Harry!"

He turned to see Hermione waving at him. Ron turned to look and his smile faded when he saw Draco standing there. Harry pushed against Draco's back to get him to move forward. They entered the living room. Hermione gave him a hug and then held out a hand toward Draco who shook it hesitantly. He was clearly wary of her since he knew Harry had told her about them. Ron smiled at Harry and then briefly nodded towards Draco. The blond just nodded back. Charlie stepped forward and shook Draco's hand.

"Nice to see you again, Draco. How's work going?"

Draco shrugged. "Not bad. We just got a new assignment recently."

Harry smiled as Charlie struck up a conversation with the blond. It was going pretty well so far.

"Here, Harry, sit down," Hermione said, gesturing.

Harry walked over and sat down next to her.

"Here's some butterbeer," she said. "I was saving it for you."

"Oh, er, thanks," he said, taking a sip.

Hermione stared at him with a forced smile. He didn't want to ask her how she was feeling about everything. He was pretty sure he knew the answer. Ginny came over with the strange guy Harry didn't know.

"Harry, this is Triton."

"Nice to meet you," Harry said, shaking his hand.

"You too," Triton said, smiling.

Ginny beamed. She was obviously pretty happy. Harry suspected that Triton was probably her new boyfriend. Glancing over at Draco he saw the blond staring at them. Draco quickly looked away and answered a question Charlie had asked him. Harry inwardly smiled as he took another gulp of butterbeer. Draco probably felt a little less at ease with Harry talking to his ex-girlfriend just as Harry had felt awkward when talking to Jace.

"So, you're working for Hellebore, right?" Ginny asked him.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, me and Draco are partners."

Ginny nodded, glancing at the blond for a second. "How is that going?"

"It's going good," Harry said. He glanced at Triton. "How are you guys?"

"Doing good," Triton said. "We're planning to go on a vacation together soon."

"Yeah," Ginny said, flushing.

"Oh, sounds really nice," Harry said. "Where are you both going?"

"We're not sure yet," Ginny said. "But we want to get in vacation before it gets too hot out once summer comes. I can't believe it's almost June."

"Harry, can I talk to you for a second in private?" Hermione asked.

Harry turned. "Oh, sure. Sorry," he said to Triton and Ginny.

"No problem, Harry," Ginny said.

Hermione led him away out into the hall.

"What's wrong, Hermione?"

"Harry, I just have to ask you something," she whispered. "Is Draco forcing you into a relationship?"

Harry opened his mouth in outrage. He wanted to tell she was ridiculous but the only thing that came out was a sudden. "No."

He hadn't even felt it coming. He had wanted to say much more than that, but his voice wasn't working properly. That's when it hit him. The dinner invite, the butterbeer that Hermione had been saving for him. She had planned the whole thing. She had slipped Veritaserum into his drink. Harry's eyes widened. He could feel his mind becoming fuzzy.

"I'm so sorry, Harry. I'm just trying to make sure you're not in danger," Hermione said, noticing the look on his face. "Is Draco blackmailing you or in any way tricking you to be with him?"

"No," Harry responded instantly.

"Did you…ask him out?" Hermione asked hesitantly.

"No. He asked me out."

"But you agreed?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Not right away. He kissed me and I wasn't sure about it at first, but we agreed to try dating to see how it would go."

Hermione nodded, looking surprised. "Oh, I see. So…your feelings are real?"

"Yes," Harry said.

"Your feelings for who?" Ron asked, appearing nearby them. He had obviously seen them go out in the hallway and wondered what they were doing.

"My feelings for D—"

Hermione said a spell that turned him mute and Harry felt his heart skip a beat. He had finished Draco's name in silence.

"Hermione, why did you do that?" Ron asked. "I want to know who Harry likes. Why are you guys keeping this from me?"

Harry answered honestly but thankfully was still mute.

"Hermione, cut it out," Ron said, reversing the spell.

"No, Ron, don't!"

"Come on, I want to know," Ron said, looking back and forth between them. "Is it someone I know?"

"Yes," Harry answered.

Ron's eyes widened in curiosity and Hermione cupped a hand over her mouth.

"No, Ron! Please! Harry doesn't want you to know! He doesn't want either of us to know!" she exclaimed.

Ron's eyebrows furrowed. "Why not?"

"You wouldn't like him," Harry responded.

Hermione's face turned white. Ron stared at him with an open mouth. His eyes bugged out.

"_Him_?! You like a guy?"

"Yes," Harry responded instantly. His fingers jerked as he tried to fight the Veritaserum. It seemed to be working, which meant Hermione only put a few drops in his drink which would last around 10-20 minutes.

"But Harry, you're not – I mean, you're – You were with my sister!" he exclaimed.

"Okay, Ron, let's not do this here. Harry needs our support," Hermione said, gesturing her hands like she was on fire.

"Wait, are you saying you were never attracted to me sister?" Ron asked, raising his voice.

"I was for a while, but I love her more like family."

Ron looked taken aback. "Are you gay?"

"I don't think so."

"Then why do you like this guy?"

"He's different and I don't know why I like him, but I do."

"Are you still remotely attracted to girls?"

"I am attracted to them, but I've never felt a strong desire to be in a relationship with someone until Ginny, and now –"

"Okay, that's great!" Hermione yelled, cupping Harry's mouth.

"Hermione, stop that! I want to know who it is!"

Harry felt the Veritaserum wear off and he could finally move his mouth and body. Harry opened and closed his mouth. His jaw felt a little stiff.

"Look, Ron, I really don't want you guys to know who I like right now. I'm not ready."

Hermione wheeled her head toward him. She looked relieved. Ron stared at him. "But you were just about to –"

"I know, but I've changed my mind. I don't want you to know until I'm sure about…him."

Ron flushed and then rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Okay."

Harry glanced down briefly. "I know it's awkward and it will take some getting used to. I just didn't know how to tell you guys."

"It's fine, Harry," Hermione said quietly. "Whatever makes you happy."

Harry glared at her and she cringed. Ron just stood there not knowing what to say.

"DINNERTIME!" Mrs. Weasley's voice rang out.

Harry was grateful for the interruption. They all three quietly went back into the living room. Draco gazed at him as he entered. The blond looked curiously at them. Harry glanced at him briefly and then looked away. They all went into the dining room. It was covered with food. Harry made sure to sit next to Draco so he wouldn't feel uncomfortable. Draco sat at the end of one side of the table. Mr. Weasley was seated at the head near Draco. Ginny sat next to Harry and her boyfriend sat next to her. Ron and Hermione sat across from him with Charlie, and Mrs. Weasley sat at the other head of the table.

"Well, everyone, dig in," she said. "There's plenty of food so eat as much as you want."

Draco's eyes widened at the large amount of food in front of him. He glanced at Harry who smiled slightly. He then caught Hermione's eye. She quickly glanced down. During dinner Mr. Weasley talked a little bit about Quidditch. Charlie talked about the dragons. Harry and Draco ate mostly in silence just listening. Hermione was rather quiet as well. Ron spoke up about the dragons with Charlie but anytime he caught Harry's eye, he quickly looked away.

After dinner Mrs. Weasley brought out dessert and drinks. Harry had a small slice of cake and a butterbeer (once that was not spiked with Veritaserum). Draco had a rather large slice of cake with his butterbeer. Hermione stood up and excused herself. As she walked out she gestured for Harry to follow. Harry then excused himself as well. Draco gazed up at him and Harry just smiled briefly. He walked toward the direction of the bathroom. Once the dining room was out of sight, he circled around to meet Hermione in the hall.

"Harry, I'm so, so sorry," Hermione said quietly. "I didn't mean for Ron to interrupt us."

"It's fine," Harry said, crossing his arms. "He's going to find out eventually. Maybe it's easier if he knows I'm into guys, or at least a guy. Maybe the blow will be easier. Did you really have to drug me?"

"I'm sorry! I had to be sure," Hermione said. "I mean, you sounded fine and I know Draco and you have been through a lot together and he's in danger to, but –"

"Hermione, I get it. You were worried," Harry said.

She nodded.

"Now you know I'm not under any sort of spell."

Hermione looked up at him sheepishly. "Actually, um, _serentius reveali_!" she exclaimed.

Harry's eyes widened as the spell hit him. He stumbled backward and coughed as the spell invaded his senses. He suddenly felt dizzy and tried to walk backward and slammed into the wall. He fell backward and landed on the floor, groaning.

"Whoops…a bit too much," Hermione said.

"What the hell was that?" Harry asked.

"Just a spell to detect if there are any spells or hexes on you that you're not aware of. Some of them cause memory loss so you wouldn't know you're being influenced. It's more subtle than a love potion."

Harry glared at her from his position on the floor. "If I could stand right now, I'd hex your hair purple."

Hermione gave him an apologetic smile. "Well, you seem okay."

"That's because I am," Harry retorted.

Hermione bent down and helped him to his feet. "Sorry. That's it, I swear. I guess it really is your choice."

Harry nodded slowly. "Yeah…are you – I mean, I hope someday you'll be able to accept it."

"Me too," she said, nodding. "I just need to process it, that's all. I mean, we've all been through so much during this war and there's just a lot of old grudges. It's just going to take some time."

Harry glanced down. "Yeah, I know."

They stood there in silence for a minute.

"Well, I'm glad you're not under any sort of influence," Hermione said. "I guess we should get back."

Harry nodded and followed her back to the dining room. Draco, Ron and Ginny all gazed up at them as they entered the room together.

"Harry, we were just asking Draco some questions about your next assignment," Mrs. Weasley said, beaming.

"I've actually heard of that plant before," Mr. Weasley said. "It used to be a menace when it grew around the old Ministry building decades ago. It would always play nasty tricks on the Minister then."

"Sounds like it's going to be tricky to catch," Charlie said, glancing at them.

Harry and Draco exchanged looks.

"We've dealt with worse," Draco said, glancing at Harry. He knew the blond was referring to the battle with the Onyx Dragon.

"Really?" Mr. Weasley asked curiously.

They all stared at them. Harry swallowed nervously and then glanced at Draco.

"Well, you know how back in Australia we found some of those black egg shells," Harry said.

"Yeah," Ron said.

Charlie nodded. Then his eyes widened. "Wait, did you two…," he trailed off.

Harry nodded.

"Blimey, no way!" Charlie exclaimed. "We've got to tell the others when we get back."

"Tell them what?!" Ron asked.

"Yeah, what?" Ginny asked curiously.

"Harry and Draco came across some black egg shells, thinking it may be an Onyx Dragon."

"You don't say?!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed. "Did you two come across a legendary Onyx Dragon?"

All eyes were on them now.

"Er, yeah," Harry answered. "It wasn't pleasant."

"You both are seriously amazing!" Charlie exclaimed.

Ron stared at his brother, looking appalled. Draco's lips curled into a grin. He took a sip of his drink to hide it but Harry clearly noticed it. At least Charlie didn't seem to mind Draco so much.

"What happened?" Ginny asked curiously. "Were you guys hurt?"

"We almost got barbequed," Draco said. "Harry acted as the bait using the newly hatched baby while I barely escaped with my life."

"Oh Harry! That's so dangerous," Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.

"Sounds like him," Charlie said, smiling.

"Oh wait, it gets better," Draco drawled, glancing sideways at him.

"Draco," Harry warned.

Everyone was staring at the exchange curiously.

"The only way that Harry survived –"

"Draco," Harry warned again.

"—is that he transformed into a wolf."

"Harry, is that true?!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.

Hermione's mouth had dropped open. "You have an Animagus form?"

"When the hell were you going to tell us that?!" Ron exclaimed.

"Well, preferably not in front of your dad," Harry said.

"You don't have to worry, Harry, I'm not going to report you," Mr. Weasley said. "But you really do need to let Minister Shaklebolt know."

"When did you find out?" Charlie asked.

"While I was trying to escape. I just kept imagining that I needed to run faster. The look on Draco's face though was priceless."

Ron snorted. "I bet."

Draco glared at Ron and then at Harry. "Very funny."

"Wow, Harry, that's really incredible," Ginny said, reaching over to pat his hand.

Draco watched the exchange.

"Thanks," Harry said. He felt Draco's eyes burning into the back of his head.

After they finally got over the initial shock, they talked about other things. Almost a half an hour later, they all were finally finished and everyone started to rise from the table.

"Well it was nice for you both to stop by," Mrs. Weasley said. "You're always welcome to come back anytime."

"Thanks," Harry said.

Draco nodded. "Thanks," he said quietly.

Mr. Weasley patted Harry's back as he was heading for the door. Ron just waved goodbye from where he stood. Ginny came over to give him a hug. Draco stared at her as she did so. She then shook Draco's hand again. Charlie gave Harry a hug and then surprised everyone by giving Draco a hug. The blond was caught off guard and his face flushed. Harry bit his lip so he wouldn't smile. Hermione gave him a hug and shook Draco's hand. Once they were all done with goodbyes, they left.

When they arrived back home, Harry was feeling tired but content.

"I suppose that wasn't too bad," Draco said walking toward the stairs.

Harry gave him a look. "You have no idea what was going on."

The blond raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"It's a long story," Harry said, sighing.

Draco stepped forward and grinned widely. "Why don't you tell me on our way up to my room?"

Harry's entire face flushed. The blond then turned around. Harry hesitated for only a split second before following Draco upstairs. Harry explained to him everything that happened. He didn't even realize they were in Draco's room until he closed the door.

"Well first off, I told you so," Draco said. "I knew she would think that I put a love spell on you."

"Yeah, fine, you were right," Harry said.

"So clearly Granger isn't as composed as she'd like us all to believe?"

Harry nodded. "I guess not."

The blond approached him and wrapped his arms around his neck. He pulled Harry in for a kiss. Harry slowly wound his arms around Draco. The blond then moved his hands to Harry's chest and began to unbutton his shirt. His fingers trailed across his exposed chest as he slipped Harry's shirt off his shoulders. It fell to the floor just as Draco broke the kiss. The blond stared at him hungrily and slipped his shirt off. Harry glanced at the blond's exposed chest before Draco closed the distance. Draco wrapped his hands in Harry's hair and pulled him in for another kiss. Harry groaned when he felt the blond's tongue in his mouth. His hands trailed across the blond's bare back. Draco began leading him backward until he fell on the bed. Harry opened his eyes to see Draco crawling on top of him placing his legs around his.

The blond's hand trailed down his body to his zipper. He unzipped his jeans but instead of unbuttoning them as well, Draco slid his fingers inside and grabbed Harry's arousal. His body jerked at the sensation. Harry's back arched as Draco rubbed his thumb down his length. The blond pressed their lips together more fervently. Harry groaned in the back of his throat. His arousal was growing and the feeling of Draco's fingers touching him was intense. The blond rubbed him for several minutes before he pulled away and unbuttoned his jeans. He slid Harry's jeans off his hips. Harry's hands trailed down Draco's back to his jeans and began to unbutton them. The blond broke the kiss long enough to help slide his jeans down.

Once they were both clad in their boxers, Draco lay on top of him again. Their lips met and Draco trailed his thumb along Harry's jawbone, getting him to open his mouth more. Draco's tongue met his and Harry made a noise. The feeling of the blond's tongue in his mouth made his arousal grow even more. Draco trailed his fingers back up to Harry's bare back before he broke the kiss. The blond's lips trailed down his chin and neck toward his chest. Harry's breath caught in his throat. The blond's lips moved down his stomach and toward his crotch. Harry gasped and tilted his head back when Draco's lips brushed across his arousal. The blond massaged his arousal through his boxers with his mouth. It was enough pleasure that Harry was gripping the sheets.

After a minute, Draco put his hands on Harry's hips. Harry glanced at him, realizing the blond was going to pull his boxers off.

"You sure you're ready?" Draco asked breathlessly.

Harry gave him a small smile. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

Draco leaned over him. "You just have to relax."

The blond then kissed the side of his face and neck. Harry could feel his arousal twitch.

"I'm trying."

"Would you prefer to take a shower together first?" Draco asked.

Harry gazed up at him. "It's not that. I'm not just anxious because of going to the next step."

Draco stared at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

"It's Voldemort. I'm just on edge because I don't know when he'll attack so it never seems like the right time," Harry said quietly.

The blond adjusted his position and sat up a bit. "Yeah, I guess that's true, but we've taken Snape's potion."

"I know. I just can't relax because it's always in the back of my mind that any day now we might have to face him. I just hope our plan works."

Draco was silent for a few seconds. "It's the best we can do. Worrying about it isn't going to change it."

"Yeah," Harry said, shrugging. "I kind of wish we had done it at the resort. That would've been the perfect time."

"Are you kidding me?!" Draco exclaimed incredulously.

"Well, I probably wasn't ready then anyway," Harry said.

Draco leaned back over him. The blond's eyes trailed down his body to his boxers. Draco's eyes met his and then the blond's hands trailed back down to his boxers.

"Don't I get to see your tattoo first?" Harry asked.

Smirking, the blond sat up. Harry propped himself up on his elbows. The blond then slowly pulled down the side of his boxers that had the tattoo. The tattoo was right on his hip and it went down to the crevice of his crotch. Harry couldn't see his penis, but he could see a peek of light blond hairs. His face flushed briefly. His eyes stared at the tattoo. It was of a beautiful winged serpent with eyes like a dragon, but silver in color. It had a long black body with pearl-like scaling that glistened and beautiful, light feathery silver wings.

"I can't believe it! It's an Occamy!" Harry exclaimed.

Draco smirked, pulling his boxers back up.

"That's why when we were in the library looking for serpents and we came across Occamy in the book, you said it was ironic. That's what you meant!"

The blond shrugged in a teasing way and then leaned back over him. They kissed fervently. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck and trailed his hands up in his hair.

Draco broke the kiss. He trailed his lips back down toward Harry's crotch. He began pulling the boxers down. Harry watched him in a sort of trance. He couldn't see much besides Draco's head, but he could feel it. The blond trailed his tongue across his pelvis area, the same area where Draco's tattoo was. The blond's fingers slipped beneath his boxers, caressing his hip. Harry groaned, closing his eyes when Draco's fingers slid to his rear and caressed him. Draco lifted his mouth from Harry's hip and pulled on his boxers, revealing the crease of his hips that lead to his crotch.

Just then a sound came from downstairs. Harry opened his eyes.

"What was that?" he whispered.

Harry sat up quickly and Draco raised his head. Harry's crotch was just barely peeking through. His boxers were part way off his hips.

"You don't think…," Harry whispered.

Both their eyes widened. They quickly got dressed. Harry ran to the attic and murmured the spell. The flames engulfed themselves in the 'weapon'. Harry grabbed the bottle and ran back into Draco's room. The blond was already dressed and looking pale.

"Here. Just in case," Harry said.

He pulled it out. They both got ready. Harry nodded to him. He went out first, followed by Draco. As they crept down the flights of stairs, Harry heard something banging.

"Wait, I think that's…," Draco trailed off. "It sounds like before when I found the secure owl in the fireplace."

Harry glanced at him. "Let's hope that's what it is."

They both came down the stairs and cautiously approached the living room. Sure enough in the fireplace a secure owl was banging up against the force-field, trying to get out. Harry exhaled deeply and then said a spell for the owl to be released. It was covered in soot and instantly headed for Harry. He grabbed the envelope, not caring about the soot and opened it.

"What's it say?" Draco asked.

Harry's eyes widened. "Oh no."

"Oh no, what?" Draco asked nervously.

"It's from the Minister," Harry said. "Apparently all the Death Eaters and criminals who were at Azkaban were…murdered."

Draco's eyes widened. "Murdered?"

Harry gazed up at him. That must've meant Lucius Malfoy was dead. He couldn't discern if Draco was thinking about his father.

"It says that a dark ritual was performed using the remaining Dementors around Azkaban, sucking the life out of all the inhabitants there. The Minister thinks that it was Voldemort, that he was using the sacrifice of his followers to strengthen his body, which means…," Harry trailed off. He gazed up at Draco slowly. "The Minister thinks Voldemort's getting ready to attack. He thinks Voldemort might come for me soon."

Draco's eyes widened. "But he can't get in here, right?"

"I don't think so, but I don't know what kind of ritual he performed. He's obviously strengthening himself for something. The Minister advises that we stay here and not leave."

"For how long? We're running out of food," Draco said.

Harry bit his lip. "I can take a quick run to the store and gather up supplies. It will only take me ten minutes. I'll go as fast as possible, but first we need to go over our plan one more time."

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

Author's Note: Sorry for the horrible cliffhanger! I will update asap! And yes, the sex is coming up! =)

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**kistenbabe**: Awww, I'm sorry! I know, this chapter was a bit of a tease, but next chapter it will be worth it! =) I'm glad you're enjoying it! I will update asap!

**bbbreeex**: Lol! Yep, more teasing moments! But it will be worth it (next chapter)! Yay! I'm so glad you find it more and more interesting. Hopefully this chapter was good too. I will update asap!

**Starr** **Whompin**: I know! Even more romantic tension in this chapter, but it will all be worth the wait! It's coming up (most likely next chapter)! =) I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Lol! Yes, I know! But I promise the sex will be worth it. It has to be the right time and this chapter wasn't right either, but next chapter looks promising! =) Hehehe, good guesses by the way as to their plan. You will find out next chapter. I will update asap!

**Padfootette**: Awww, thanks! =) Yes, I will definitely update soon!

**HPmeghan7474**: Yes, that's true, Jace is cool but still kind of a threat. =) Nope that's not the last you're going to see of him. Hehehe! I will update asap!

**Abeham**: Aww, thanks! I'm so glad you like how the relationship has progressed. I'm pretty satisfied with it too. I want it to be believable and not go too fast. Awww, thanks! I'm so glad you like the plot and my ideas. And I'm glad you like where it's headed even despite the impending doom, lol! I have taken into consideration your idea about them just sleeping together before sex. I can't promise that will happen, but thanks for the idea. I will definitely update asap! Thanks again!

**AFLlover**: Awwww, thanks! I'm so glad you like it so far! I will update asap!

**Carling**: Hahaha! Yes, I know, Harry had such a good opportunity. He's so stubborn sometimes. I promise next chapter will be worth it! =) Yes, Draco definitely feels differently about Harry than Jace. Oh my gosh! That is so crazy about your ex and your husband! That's pretty neat though that they represent such hot characters! =) Wow! Your life really is a hoot! That's so cool! Tom Felton is pretty cute so that's cool to be hit on by someone who looks like him, even if it is a girl. =) Awwww, well I'm very glad that your long road led you to happiness! Oh gosh, I feel the same way. Fanfiction is definitely good therapy, lol! I will update asap!

**Dragonlover**: Awww, thanks! I'm so glad you like this story so far. I'm glad the quests are interesting and not taking away from the romance. =) It makes the story more fun to write. I will update asap!

**MDarKspIrIt**: Awww, thanks so much! I'm so happy that you like to read it in your spare moments! YAY! I promise not to make you wait too long for the next update. I will update asap!

**Guest**: Lol! It's true Harry had no right to look into Draco's mind, but you know how Harry can be. He can get himself into trouble. =) And it all worked out. Glad you love the story so far! I will update asap!


	19. Chaos and Radiance

_**Luminescence**_

_**Author's Note:**_ Wahooooo! I updated this in record time! =) Two days! And it's my longest chapter yet. I wish I could update this fast all the time. Working and studying sucks. Why can't I just spend all my time writing fanfiction? Hope this chapter was worth the wait (and the cliffhanger)! ENJOY!

**Chapter 18: Chaos and Radiance**

Harry and Draco stared at one another after the 'weapons' were activated. Harry had summoned a mirror in the room so they could practice.

"Okay. I think we've got it," Harry said.

They both glanced down at the 'weapons' they held.

"This is strange."

"I know," Harry said, glancing in the mirror that was hovering above them.

"It's the best we've got," Draco said, crossing his arms.

"Yeah," Harry said, wringing his hands through his hair. "I just hope it actually fools him."

Draco nodded. They were both silent for a minute.

"How long do you think it will last?" Draco asked.

"Hopefully three hours with the strengthening spell and the Onyx Dragon's flames. If it wears off after I get back we can use another strengthening spell. I don't want to use the flames again in case we need all of it for that potion."

"Yeah," Draco said, licking his lips nervously. "But we should probably keep them on from now on and just strengthen them every time they wear off."

Harry nodded. "I think that's our best defense since we don't know when he'll attack. I should probably go get the supplies."

Draco approached him. "I'm sure everything will be okay. The Minister might catch him before he even gets to you."

Harry smiled weakly. "That would be nice."

Draco reached out his hands and cupped Harry's face, making him look up at him. "When you get back, we can finish what we started."

Harry flushed. "Yeah."

Draco bent over and kissed him gently. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck, pulling the blond closer. Draco slipped his tongue in his mouth and Harry groaned. He really didn't want to leave, but they really had no choice. Eventually they'd have to get food and supplies and the longer they waited the more dangerous it would become. Harry broke away, gazing at him briefly.

"I should get going."

Draco nodded. "Get back as fast as possible."

After discussing the plan one more time, they decided it would be best to keep the weapon activated for the time being. When it wore off they would need to be together to reactivate it.

Harry rushed to the store to pick up supplies. He bought enough food to last a month and plenty of butterbeer to get them through the stress. He got back to the house and said the spell in his head. He stepped into the house, floating the groceries with him. Draco heard him come in and came out of the living room to greet him.

"Did you get everything?"

"Yeah," Harry said, floating the groceries into the kitchen.

"That was quick," Draco said. "Don't forget to shut the door."

"What? I already…," Harry turned around.

His words vanished as Slughorn's body came into view. He said a hex as quickly as possible but it was deflected by Voldemort's amulet. His skin was discolored in some areas and peeling away around the edges of his face and on his neck. Thankfully the rest of his body was covered by the black robe he wore. Voldemort raised his wand before either of them could react. Harry's throat suddenly closed up as if a large hand was crushing his neck. He instinctively put his hands up to his throat, choking for air. Draco tried to use his wand to stop him but Voldemort disarmed him. His wand went flying straight into Voldemort's free hand.

"I've become much stronger, but I'm afraid I have little time and little patience," he hissed.

Harry clawed at his throat. He could barely breathe. Voldemort made a motion with his hand, clenching his fist. Harry felt the grip on his throat tighten. Voldemort clenched his fist hard and Harry expected his neck to snap, but it didn't. Voldemort's eyes glimmered with rage.

"I see you both have taken the potion again. Clever," he said with a sneer.

With that he gestured with his wand and Harry went flying backward, slamming into the wall by the kitchen. Harry felt his shoulders slam into the wall and he groaned. Thankfully his back took more of the impact than his head. He still collapsed to the floor. He heard Draco scream. Harry struggled to raise his head and he saw Draco being dragged across the floor by an invisible force until he was right in front of Voldemort. Draco's body was lifted up off the floor and ropes wrapped around his body. Harry stared up at Voldemort who sneered back at him. Voldemort summoned his wand from where it was lying on the floor, leaving him completely defenseless.

"This time I'll get what I want. I've sealed all the exits so you can't get out. I'll deal with you when I get back."

Harry saw the terrified look on Draco's face before the door slammed shut and then just vanished. Harry stumbled to his feet and went over to where the door had been. He banged on the wall with no luck. He had to find a way out to get to Kingsley and the Order; otherwise it would be too late for Draco.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Draco felt his body being dragged. His heart was pounding. He could feel the weapon still on him. Just thinking about it gave him the tiniest bit of hope that he wasn't going to be tortured and killed. He hoped Voldemort wouldn't see through him. Swallowing, he tried not to lose hope. Harry had been tossed against the wall like a rag doll. He seemed relatively okay. At least they both couldn't die with the potion in their system (unless of course Voldemort killed them both at the same time). Still, the plan was already being ruined. Harry was trapped in the house. Now their only hope was that Voldemort would weaken quickly and have no more Dementors or any way of rejuvenating his body.

His body was thrown forward. He landed on his side and groaned. Looking around, he recognized the cave. It was the same cave that Slughorn had taken them to, the one that could only be opened with Parseltongue. Voldemort waved his wand and Draco's body suddenly rose up of its own accord. His arms stretched out and the ropes expanded and dug into either side of the cave walls leaving Draco's arms trapped but spread out. His legs were stuck together by the rope. The ropes holding his arms apart kept his body standing upright. He tried not to raise his head to look at Voldemort but his head was forced upward. He cringed at the sudden movement.

"Now I have you alone," Voldemort hissed. "And you know that the only way to get in here is by using Parseltongue. There is no one to save you now."

Draco's eyes widened as he stared at him.

Voldemort sneered darkly. "You seem frightened. As you should be. For too long my plans have been ruined. I worked hard to achieve something no one else could, to be free of death," he hissed. "You may have prevented my plan for the time being, but you will never be strong enough to stop me. I have the strength of my followers now. Sacrificing them using Dementors to help strengthen me enough to perform the ritual was the only choice left. They were all expendable. Their loyalty is worth much more in their sacrifice. Still, this body is falling apart."

He rose up a hand and Draco could see the decaying flesh and peeling skin that was falling off. He swallowed harshly so he wouldn't vomit.

"I don't have much time, but I have enough time for this," he said as his red eyes narrowed maliciously. "_Crucio_!"

Draco screamed loudly as the curse ravaged his body, tearing at his muscles. Voldemort's red eyes were gleaming at him as he held his wand steady. He let the curse linger until Draco thought he might pass out. When it finally ended, Draco was gasping for breath, and his body was trembling.

"Fortunately for you I can't do any permanent damage. You'll be suffering just knowing I've won. Still," he said, tapping his finger on his wand, "you do need to learn your lesson."

The Cruciatus Curse came at him again and Draco screamed. He struggled against the restraints as the pain sliced through him. The pain was so intense, ripping through his muscles and deep within his body that his eyes began to water.

Once it ended, Draco's head felt too heavy to hold up. He was gasping for breath as sweat dripped down his face. The tears that sprung to his eyes from the pain dripped down his face. One dropped to the ground. He heard footsteps and saw the faded black boots. His chin was grabbed roughly and his neck was forced up. Voldemort's face was right in his. Even though it was Slughorn's face, it was Voldemort's eyes and his sneer looking back at him.

"Had enough pain yet?"

Draco refused to talk. Voldemort stuck his wand up to his hip and he felt his hip snap. Draco cried out in pain, clenching his fists as the searing pain traveled through the entire left side of his body.

"Answer me!" Voldemort hissed in his yes.

"Y-yes," Draco stammered. Tears began sliding down as the pain became intense.

Voldemort stood there for a second and then forced him to look up.

"Tell me I've won," he said, his eyes glaring into his hungrily.

Draco trembled due to the extreme pain. He squeezed his eyes shut briefly. "Y-you won."

Voldemort sneered victoriously and then struck his broken hip with the back of his hand. Draco screamed in agony and couldn't help as he started to cry. He sobbed once from the severe pain and then attempted to bite his lip to stop from crying. The pain was too much. Voldemort squeezed his chin painfully and tilted his head back.

"You were a fool to ever challenge me!" he hissed, bringing his face right up to his.

Draco was beginning to hyperventilate from the pain, but he kept blinking to keep himself awake.

"Now you will forever know that you're no match for me."

He squeezed Draco's jaw harshly again before releasing him. Draco squeezed his eyes shut. To his surprise, Voldemort waved his wand and healed his fractured hip. The pain decreased and he exhaled shakily with relief. Voldemort then twirled his wand in his hand.

"That potion you took to protect your life will come in very handy for me," he said coldly. "But first I must finish what I started. It took me a while to think of a way to get around the potion, to make sure it doesn't interfere with the ritual. The potion only interferes when the person you're bound to is in close proximity. You see now why I've brought you here alone, to suffer and die alone. Your newfound _friend_ can't save you now, and once I deal with him, no one will be the wiser."

Voldemort stood in front of him and stepped closer. Draco's eyes locked onto the amulet around his neck. Voldemort began chanting in Parseltongue. Draco recognized it from the few times Harry spoke it. He didn't know what he was saying. He just knew it wasn't good. He clenched his fist and braced himself. This was it. The amulet began to glow. As it did Voldemort stepped closer and reached out a hand, pushing it roughly against his forehead. The touch was cold and clammy. He could smell the decay of Slughorn's body. Draco shut his eyes.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Harry knew there wasn't much time. He had checked every door and window and fireplace in the entire house. They were all closed off. His mind began spinning at the thought of what Voldemort could be doing to Draco. There had to be a way out. He had no wand to reverse the hex Voldemort placed on the house.

"Think! Think!" Harry exclaimed, grabbing his hair in frustration.

He closed his eyes and thought hard. There had to be a weak spot in the house somewhere or a place where Voldemort wouldn't think to seal up. Harry's eyes snapped open. The attic! It was all the way up on the fifth floor, high enough that perhaps Voldemort wouldn't think to seal up. He ran all the way up to the attic and burst through the door. The main window had been sealed up but there was a small, slender window just for the purpose of letting sunlight in. It hadn't vanished. The only problem with it was that it was too small for him to squeeze through.

Harry's eyes widened. It was too small for him to squeeze through in his _human_ form, but not his Animagus form.

"Okay. I can do this," he whispered.

He wasn't sure how to trigger the transformation, but he was hoping the rush of adrenaline like in the dragon's lair would cause it. He stared at the window for several minutes trying to will his body to transform.

"Come on, come on," Harry whispered frantically.

Nothing was happening. He cursed and collapsed to the floor. He couldn't let Voldemort win. He couldn't. Harry gazed up at the window. In anger he threw a bottle at it, causing the glass to shatter. He stared at the hole, his only escape. Harry got to his feet. Just like in the lair he focused on getting out. Stepping backward a bit, he then braced himself. With a grunt, he charged toward the window, staring at the small hole, focusing on getting through it. He thought about Draco, about Voldemort hurting him, about the fact that he had to save him. He threw himself at the window and he yelped. He blinked several times as he stared at the ground far below him. It took him a minute to realize his head and neck were sticking out the window, but his back struck the top of the window sill where there was a small piece of glass. It scraped his back. He could scarcely feel the blood. When he gazed down, he saw that instead of hands he had paws.

Growling, he flattened his smaller body and slowly crawled through the window the rest of the way. He had to place his front paws on the siding of the house, which wasn't very thick. He gazed down at the ground knowing it was way too high to jump. He gazed around, sniffing the air. He smelled something. Very carefully he crept along the high siding until he came around the side of the house. There was a tree standing nearby and a long branch. If he jumped with enough force, he could probably make the jump. Glancing down at the height, he whimpered. He only had one shot.

His eyes focused on the branch in front of him. Bending all four legs down, he lifted up his tail and leapt. He hit the branch which began bouncing from the weight. He whimpered as his body began losing balance. He dug his claws into the tree branch and waited, clinging on for dear life until the branch stopped shaking. Turning his head he saw a squirrel on the branch above him just staring at him. Harry growled and the squirrel took off. Slowly, he rose up and cautiously followed the tree branch. It was tricky going down. He had to jump to branches that he wouldn't fall off of. It took him some time to maneuver his way down. When he was close to the ground, however, his paw slipped and he yelped as he was flung forward. He landed very sloppily on four legs, one of them buckling beneath him. He quickly composed himself and took off at lightning speed. He knew the general direction of where the Ministry building was, but it would take him longer to get there without a broom. He just hoped Draco would be all right.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The light from the pendant was so blinding that Draco had to look away. He knew what Voldemort was planning. It would be all over soon. It finally stopped and Draco opened his eyes. Voldemort was staring at him. The red eyes narrowed and glowered with rage.

Voldemort released a horrendous cry of fury. His body wobbled a bit unsteady but then he slowly began to approach him. Draco's eyes widened and he attempted to struggle against the binds. They began to dig painfully into his wrists.

"It should've worked!" Voldemort hissed with rage. "WHY DIDN'T IT WORK?!"

The pain sliced through him and Draco screamed. Two of his ribs broke instantaneously. He was in so much pain it hurt to breathe. He tried not to cry because it only made the pain worse. Voldemort approached him with his wand pointed directly at him.

"TELL ME, BOY!" he exclaimed.

"I don't know!" Draco cried out.

Tears welled up in his eyes and he fought through the pain. He didn't think he could take any more. He prayed that Voldemort really couldn't read his mind with Snape's potion. Voldemort backhanded him across his face and Draco tasted blood his mouth. Voldemort then crushed his chin with his hand, bringing his face up to his. Already Draco could see all of the skin on his face was peeling now. His skin was now a sickly gray color.

"Why did my ritual not work?" he hissed, bearing his teeth. "The Astringo potion should not interfere with the ritual when you are far from him! So tell me, what else did you take?! Or I will make you suffer."

Draco screamed again, sobbing as pain radiated around his whole body. He felt his skin splitting open as deep gashes slashed across his back, arms and legs. Blood poured out, dripping onto the floor. Voldemort forced him to look up at him. He forced Draco to stare directly into his eyes.

"I don't know," Draco said weakly as tears streamed down his face. "I swear, I don't know!"

Voldemort stared at him for a minute in silence, his red eyes boring into his. The pain was so immense his focus was wavering. He could feel his body losing energy as more blood dripped onto the floor. Voldemort sneered coldly and then stepped away. He began pacing. Draco was feeling extremely weak. Snape's potion must have worked otherwise Voldemort would have surely tortured him more. That meant he believed Draco when he told him he didn't know why the ritual didn't work.

"There has to be a reason! My body is dying! I don't have time!"

Voldemort wheeled around and faced him again. "If this ritual won't work then I have no use for you."

"You can't…kill me," Draco forced out weakly.

"I can keep you in here bleeding and suffering until the potion wears off before I finally end your pathetic life," he sneered, grabbing his chin again, "Potter."

Just then Voldemort wheeled around as a hex flew by him. He barely dodged. Voldemort hissed in fury, his red eyes glaring into Draco's at the unexpected intrusion. Draco could barely make out Harry appearing.

"Let him go!"

"So you have betrayed your parents, you worthless –"

Harry shot spell after spell against him. Voldemort then whipped his wand toward Draco.

"I can make him suffer even more."

Harry's eyes widened as Voldemort readied his spell. Harry made a move but Voldemort suddenly shot him with a hex that caused him to fall over. Voldemort wobbled for a couple steps as he walked toward him. Harry stared up at him in terror.

"You've gotten in my way for the last time, Draco."

A sudden slew of hexes and spells came flying. Voldemort screamed in fury and pain as a couple of them hit him. He was unable to dodge them all. Voldemort's knees hit the ground. He looked horrible. His skin was gray and peeling. He had very little energy and power left. Breathing shallowly as the Aurors and Kingsley began to approach, Voldemort said an incantation in Parseltongue and his face contorted in pain as the amulet around his neck began to burn through his skin until it disappeared inside his body. The Aurors, including Order members, and Kingsley all surrounded them. Voldemort was staring at them in fury and in surprise, wondering how they even got in.

"It's over, Voldemort," Kingsley said, keeping his wand steady. "Your escapes at death end here."

Harry saw the state Draco was in and rushed over to him. He released him from the bonds and caught him before he collapsed to the ground.

"Minister, we need to get him to St. Mungo's!" Harry exclaimed.

Voldemort's eyes wheeled onto him and he laughed. "At least I made Potter suffer. I can take those memories with me to whatever prison you think will be enough," he hissed.

"You're wrong," Harry said boldly.

Voldemort's eyes bore into his and Harry glanced down at the ring on his finger, the same ring that Draco was wearing. The illusion began to fade and Voldemort's eyes widened in rage.

_**FLASHBACK**_

_**Back at Cyprian's Hogsmeade event one day ago:**_

_Cyprian led him into the new store. It was huge. There were three floors. The first floor had all kinds of exotic and expensive-looking jewelry. _

"_All of these are made from shrake scales. We can change the color of pearly scales to make various kinds of jewelry. The best part is that Shrakes are magical creatures and the source of which is in their scales. So depending on what people are looking for, we've enhanced the abilities by charming some of the jewelry. Certain ones will glow when danger is near, or others will tingle. Some of them can turn you invisible, just for a few minutes at a time and it takes time to recharge. My favorites are the ones that cause illusions."_

"_Illusions?" Harry asked. _

_Cyprian smiled. "You can change into a person, again temporarily, but it's kind of like a lighter version of polyjuice potion."_

_Harry blinked. "So you can become anyone you think of?"_

"_Well not exactly. If you want to switch places with someone, they have to buy the same ring or piece of jewelry and say the same enchantment. So it has to be mutual. It would be illegal otherwise. If you're ever interested in trying out anything, you would get half off the original price," he said, smiling. _

_Harry eyed the jewelry as his mind was spinning. "Yeah…Thanks."_

_Cyprian smiled. _

"_Er, actually, I do have a friend's birthday coming up. I would like to buy a couple of rings," Harry said. _

_A thought occurred to him. If he and Draco could switch places, then conceivable if Voldemort was fooled he would try the ritual on Draco instead of him. Without a Horcrux inside of Draco (or ever having been inside), it most likely would fail and hopefully leave Voldemort in too weak of a state to fight. _

"_Absolutely! Choose whichever ones you want."_

_Harry went around the first floor searching for rings that looked elegant and stylish. He found a couple that had an engraving in the center in the shape of a dragon. The entire ring itself was silver with a square shaped emblem. The dragon, made entirely out of the shimmery Shrake scales, was in the center of the square. The rest of the background on the square piece sitting atop the silver band was a black. The ring wasn't very big either. It was the perfect size. _

"_I'll get these two."_

"_Great choice," Cyprian said, smiling. _

_**END OF FLASHBACK**_

The ring's ability faded along with Harry's disguise of looking like Draco. Once they appeared as they actually were, Voldemort cried out in fury. His red eyes glowed with rage. He realized he had been tricked. From the moment that Harry left the house to go to the store he was wearing the ring, which had been activated so he looked like Draco. Voldemort thought when he took Draco that he was taking Harry. The ritual had failed, just as they planned, because Voldemort used it on Draco and not Harry.

Harry held Draco in his arms. He was covered in blood and was breathing shallowly. Every time he did so he winced in pain. There were tears dried on his cheeks and fresh ones falling.

"You did great," Harry whispered, putting a hand on his head. "You're going to be okay."

Draco didn't respond. He was struggling to stay awake. The Aurors and Order members all bound Voldemort up in chains. He could hear Voldemort hissing in Parseltongue but he wasn't paying attention. His eyes remained on Draco, watching him breathe. Kingsley came over to him and examined him without touching.

"He's in pretty bad shape but I sent up sparks. They'll be here soon, Harry," he said, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder.

He nodded numbly.

"Voldemort's got my wand."

Kingsley turned and waved his wand. Harry's wand flew out of Voldemort's pocket and into his hands. He handed it to him.

"Thanks," Harry said weakly.

"Everything's going to be okay, Harry," Kingsley said gently. He squeezed Harry's shoulder briefly before he turned toward Voldemort who was being subdued. Just then two witches wearing the St. Mungo's uniforms came in carrying a stretcher. They floated Draco up onto it and began applying healing spells right away. Kingsley told Harry to go with them and be with Draco. He nodded wordlessly and barely paid attention to the fact that Voldemort was being hauled away. Harry rode with the St. Mungo's witches. He was told to wait outside the room, however, when they arrived so they could work on Draco.

It was some time later when a nurse came out to see him. Harry immediately stood up.

"How is he doing?"

"Honestly," she said, shaking her head, "if you both hadn't taken that Astrindgo potion he probably wouldn't have made it. A couple ribs were also broken, and it looks like his hip had been fractured and was mostly healed, but it still needs a bit of healing. The most concerning thing was the dark spell that caused the gashes that's going to take time to heal. It was a very powerful curse. Thankfully, it's reversible but it will just take a little time."

Harry nodded slowly. He was feeling sick to his stomach. Voldemort hurt Draco. He tortured him.

"How long will it take for him to heal?"

"Probably a few days," she said. "After that he'll need to continue taking his healing potions for a week until the curse is completely out of his system otherwise the gashes will appear again. He's resting comfortably now. His ribs are healing nicely and should be completely healed by tomorrow."

Harry swallowed. "Thanks. Can I see him?"

She nodded and gestured for him to enter the room. As he walked in, a couple other nurses were leaving. They all left to give him some privacy. Harry saw several potion bottles and ointments on the bureau next to the bed. He walked over to the bed and sat down in the chair beside it. Draco was covered in bandages. He had a loose shirt on that remained open in the front revealing a good portion of his chest. Thankfully his chest wasn't covered in bandages, but Harry could see the bruising in the area where his ribs had been broken. They most likely had given him a sleep potion since he had been in so much pain.

"I'm so sorry, Draco," Harry whispered.

He felt his nose sting. Seeing Draco like this broke his heart.

"Harry?"

Turning his head, Harry blinked away tears that were threatening to fall. Hermione stood in the doorway looking pale and concerned.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, his voice cracking.

"I was shadowing one of the nurses today and I heard what happened. I thought…I thought at first it was you they were bringing in. All I heard was that Voldemort had attacked and they had a boy that needed immediate attention."

Harry turned away and stared down at Draco. "No, it wasn't me. Draco risked his life for me. We used these rings to create the illusion of being each other. Voldemort captured Draco with the intent of capturing me."

Harry couldn't say anymore. He glanced down, biting his lip. Hermione walked into the room, gazing down at Draco. She pulled up a chair and sat next to him quietly. For a minute, neither of them spoke.

"He must really care about you," she said quietly.

Harry turned to gaze at her. She was still staring at Draco.

"If he knowingly switched places with you, knowing the risks, then he put himself on the line for your sake." She turned to him and smiled sadly. "That means he really cares about you."

Harry felt his eyes water and he nodded. He didn't want to cry in front of Hermione. She reached out and placed a hand on is.

"I'm so sorry for what I did," she said quietly, sniffling. "I know it was wrong of me. I was afraid that you were being influenced without even having any idea of it. That's why I did what I did."

"I know," Harry said quietly.

"I realize now that you don't just have feelings for him, of your own will, but Draco clearly has feelings for you. I never would've imagined that…"

"Sometimes I can't believe it either," Harry said. "I mean, he's so different from how he was in school."

Hermione nodded. "I know you're probably still mad, but I hope you'll forgive me. I promise to be supportive of you two from now on. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Harry turned and smiled softly. "Thanks. It means a lot."

Nodding, she sighed heavily. "We both know Ron isn't going to take this lightly. I have no idea how he's going to react, but it's not going to be pleasant. I promise I won't tell him anything. When you're ready, you can tell him."

"Thanks, Hermione."

Hermione smiled and reached out to give him a hug. "I have to get back to shadowing, but definitely keep in touch. I'll let you know when I have a break from school again."

"Okay," Harry said as she pulled away.

Hermione waved to him before she disappeared. Harry turned back to Draco. A tear slid down his face and he quickly wiped it away. Pulling out his wand, Harry expanded the size of the bed. He kicked off his shoes and carefully crept up onto the bed. He propped one of the pillows up behind his head as he lay down next to Draco. Slowly, he placed his hand on top of the blond's.

Sometime later Harry awoke when he felt something squeezing his hand. His eyes opened and he turned his head. Draco was staring at him. The blond looked tired but he was awake.

"Draco," Harry said, adjusting his position. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better," he said in a raspy voice.

Harry gently squeezed his hand. "You were so brave."

It was all he could say at once. He was afraid tears would start to fall. Draco's eyebrows furrowed.

"Is Voldemort gone?"

"He's in the Minister's custody. He's weak and defenseless. His body is dying so I'm sure once that happens we'll be rid of him for good. We did it, Draco. We beat him."

"Yeah," Draco said quietly. The blond turned and stared up at the ceiling.

"Are you in any pain?"

"Not much, but some," he said. "They just gave me some more medicine."

"Oh," Harry said, feeling his cheeks burn. The nurses must have seen him lying next to him holding his hand. "You should know that Hermione was here."

Draco slowly turned his face to the side to glance at him.

"She's shadowing some nurses for her mediwitch program. She said she's accepted us going out. She thought you were really brave too for what you did."

Draco tried to give him a sarcastic look. In his weak state it wasn't very effective. "If you think I'm doing this again to get Weasel's approval, you're insane."

Harry cracked a smile. "I don't blame you."

They both fell into a comfortable silence.

"Do you want me to get you something to eat?" Harry asked.

Draco glanced at him. "Sure. Do they have soup?"

"I'll check. You want a Nettle juice too?"

Draco nodded. "Thanks."

Harry smiled. "I'll be right back."

He went to the cafeteria and got Draco some Bowtruckle soup. The Bowtruckle was a creature that lived in parts of Britain, Germany and Scandinavia. It was small insect-like tree-dweller with long sharp fingers that it used to peck into trees to eat wood lice. It normally dwelled in magical trees whose wood is of wand quality. They were fairly harmless unless provoked, in which they could stab a witch or wizard in the eye, but apparently they also made a delectable soup.

Draco raised his head when he smelled it as Harry walked back inside with his soup and Icestorm Nettle juice. It was his favorite flavor. It was a dark icy blue on the inside and the glass was frosted on the outside. Harry sat with him while he ate. He still hadn't regained his appetite since seeing Draco in such a horrible state. A little bit later some nurses came in to change his bandages and give him more potions, one for healing and one for pain.

A little while later it was nighttime. Harry was feeling rather exhausted. Draco yawned and then glanced over at him.

"If you're bored, you can leave."

"It's okay. I'd feel weird going back there without you."

Draco looked surprised. He saw the blond look away briefly in embarrassment.

"Besides, I figured you might feel better with me here, since you're in a hospital bed and not in your own bed."

Draco shrugged. "Yeah, that's true."

Harry nodded and fell into silence. Draco raised an eyebrow.

"Are you going to come up here?"

Raising an eyebrow back, Harry lay down on the bed next to him.

"You can get under the sheets you know."

Flushing, Harry was grateful that it was dark in their room with only the moonlight shining through the windows. He pulled the covers back and slipped in the bed. It was already warm from Draco's body heat. Harry lay his head down on the second pillow. He felt Draco adjust his position next to him, but he didn't turn to look. His eyes were feeling heavy. His body was sore. His back throbbed but he was too tired to pay attention.

When he opened his eyes again it was morning and there was a nurse bustling around the room. Harry turned his head and rubbed his eyes. Draco was already seated up eating breakfast. The blond glanced down at him and smiled.

"You're finally up."

"What time is it?" Harry asked.

"Almost ten."

"Really? Ow!" Harry hissed as he moved his upward.

Draco stared at him with concern. "What is it? Is that blood?" he asked, wide-eyed.

Harry gazed down at the bed to see a blood stain. The nurse immediately came over to him.

"Where does it hurt?" she asked gently.

"My back," Harry said, wincing.

She lifted up his shirt. "Oh, yeah, I'll need to get some Dittany cream. Just hold still for one minute. There's a piece of glass imbedded in the wound."

Harry winced and squeezed his eyes shut briefly as she waved her wand and levitated the piece of glass out of the wound.

"Thankfully it's not too deep. The bleeding seems to have slowed which means it's already begun healing. The Dittany will help it heal faster though."

She reached for a bottle on the bureau and slathered onto his wound. Harry felt immediate relief from the throbbing. She then placed a bandage over it.

"It should be fine by tomorrow," she said, smiling.

"Thanks," Harry said.

She smiled at them both. "You're welcome. And Draco, you should be fine to go home now. Just remember to take your potion for another week."

Draco nodded. "I will. Thanks."

She smiled and then left the room.

"How'd you get that wound?" Draco asked.

"I think it was when I was in my Animagus form and I squeezed through that small window," Harry said, leaning back against the pillow gently.

"You want some breakfast?" Draco asked, gesturing to his half-eaten plate.

Harry shook his head. "I'll wait until we get home."

About an hour later they both left by St. Mungo's flying car and arrived home. They were both too exhausted to do much of anything. Draco went straight to bed and Harry decided to do the same.

For the next week Draco took it easy to make sure that his wounds had completely healed. That meant postponing Dimitri's assignment until he was better. That day they both slept in late. Draco had to leave for his St. Mungo's checkup, and Harry had a meeting with the Minister in the late afternoon. After lounging around in his pajamas after Draco left, Harry flew over to the Ministry to meet with Kingsley.

A while later, Harry returned to find Draco in the kitchen making an early dinner.

"What did they say?"

"I'm all healed," he said, sighing. "Thank Merlin. That potion tasted like sea water."

Harry smiled. "Well I'm glad you're all healed."

"Me too," he said. "I still felt like doing absolutely nothing today, which is exactly what I did."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "We can start Dimitri's assignment tomorrow."

Draco nodded. "How was the meeting with the Minister?"

"Okay," Harry said as his smile faded. "Voldemort's still alive. He's hanging on somehow. Kingsley's not sure how. He thinks it has something to do with the amulet that Voldemort magically forced into his chest. They can't get it out and they're not sure why yet."

"Great," Draco muttered, running a hand through his hair. "Is this guy ever going to die?"

"At least he's locked up securely and can't hurt anyone," Harry said. "That's a start."

Draco exhaled deeply. "I won't feel better until he's a pile of dust."

Harry nodded. "Me too."

They fell into silence again. Draco crossed his arms.

"So what's the next step? Where do we start on the plant-creature? I mean there's like nothing out there."

Harry sat there for a minute. His head snapped up. "Wait!"

"What?" Draco asked eagerly.

"Remember I told you about that famous Herbologist that Neville is going to meet? The one that he was going to shadow in the field?"

"Yeah, Davin Rigelsby."

"Well he's coming into town this week. I'm going to owl Neville to see if he'd be willing to introduce us. It's possible that being a famous Herbology expert, he might have some ideas about the plant-creature, or at least where to start."

"That's a good idea," Draco said, nodding. "It's better than nothing at this point."

"Yeah. Er, Draco, there is something else," Harry said.

The blond turned to face him. "What? Is it Voldemort?"

"No," Harry said, biting his lip. "When I went to speak with Kingsley he also said that your father is alive."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't understand. He said all the Death Eaters – everyone in Azkaban was murdered!"

"They were. Your father wasn't in Azkaban," Harry said. "The Ministry was preparing for Voldemort's attack. They didn't want all the Death Eaters to be in one place. They had been working on a new building which is on an isolated island in the middle of the ocean. It's guarded by Merpeople. It's just as secure and uninviting as Azkaban only without Dementors. There's also a force-field around it to add protection in case anyone tries to escape. Plus if they did they'd be surrounded by water and the Merpeople wouldn't let them swim to freedom."

"Yeah. They'd most likely drown them," Draco said.

Harry nodded slowly. "That's what Mr. Weasley was talking about at the Ministry when he said they were preparing and getting things in order. So your father, along with a few less dangerous Death Eaters and other criminals, were all in the new building Zylon."

"So he manages to slide by on a minimum sentence _and_ be lucky enough to escape that fate," Draco said bitterly.

Harry didn't know what to say. Draco sighed heavily and then wheeled around and stomped up to his room. Harry hesitated for a split second, not knowing if Draco needed to be alone. After a minute, he decided to follow Draco upstairs. He opened the door without knocking to see Draco throwing his shirt on the floor. The blond wheeled around when he heard him come in.

"Hey. It will work out okay. Whether he's imprisoned or not, he can't control you anymore."

"Yes, he can! The Vow controls me!" Draco snapped.

"We'll break it."

"You don't know that! Even if we manage to find that plant-creature it still might not work!"

Draco exhaled deeply and sat down on his bed rubbing his face. Harry approached him and sat down on the bed next to him.

"We'll find a way," Harry said. "We still have time."

"My birthday is in a couple weeks," Draco muttered. "Then we just have a year."

"What do you want to do for your birthday?"

"You're changing the subject."

Harry grimaced. "Look. You told me before that worrying doesn't change anything."

Draco glanced at him and then rolled his eyes. "Great. Using my words against me again."

Harry smiled. "Yep. Now stop worrying."

The blond sighed but didn't argue. Harry glanced at his back where some of the gashes used to be. All the scars on his body had healed. Harry's eyes moved to the floor. He couldn't help the wave of guilt that came over him. Draco must have noticed his expression.

"What's wrong?"

Harry glanced up and then shrugged.

Draco sighed. "Come on. I vented now it's your turn."

Harry hesitated for a few seconds. "It's just…," he trailed off. "It's my fault."

The blond stared at him with furrowed eyebrows. "What is?"

"The fact that you got hurt. It was my plan."

Draco straightened up. "You're really still bothered by that?"

"You could've died," Harry said. "If you hadn't unintentionally found out about the potion and then suggested that we use it –"

"Well, I did," Draco said. "Besides, your plan worked. Voldemort's imprisoned in the Ministry. That's better than him running amuck."

Harry sighed and shook his head. "Still. You had to go through that because of me."

He continued to stare at the ground. He didn't want to see the look of agreement on Draco's face. The blond grabbed his chin gently and forced him to look at him.

Draco stared at him earnestly. "I don't blame you."

Harry blinked in surprise. He saw the compassion in the blond's gaze. Draco had been a friend to him when his friends were busy and far away. He had taught him to swim and was patient with him. And now Draco had risked his life for him. Harry knew that if he stared at him any longer, or thought about it any harder, he would get emotional. He didn't want to make the blond feel uncomfortable.

Instead, Harry leaned forward and kissed him passionately. He wrapped his arms around Draco's neck, dragging his fingers up into the blond's hair. Draco made a sound in the back of his throat and tightened his grip around him. Harry trailed his fingers down from Draco's hair across his bare back. His skin was warm and smooth. Draco scooted closer to him, pulling him in at the same time and tilted his head. Harry felt his tongue enter his mouth and he felt his stomach flip in excitement. He made a sound in the back of his throat and slid his tongue against Draco's.

As their tongues sparred, Draco's fingers slipped underneath his shirt and began stroking his back. He then grabbed the ends of his shirt and began lifting it up. They broke away momentarily so Draco could slip Harry's shirt over his head. The blond tossed it on the floor and grabbed his face, pulling him in for another kiss. Harry's fingers trailed back up Draco's warm back. The blond moved his hand to Harry's jeans. He trailed his hand up Harry's leg and thigh up to his waist. His fingers slipped down beneath his waistband and rubbed his hip, sliding down a little more to ghost above his crotch.

Draco adjusted his position and moved so that he was crawling over him. Harry felt his body being pushed backward gently and he lay down on the bed. Draco unbuttoned his jeans and pulled them off. Harry lay there in his dark green briefs that looked like really short shorts. Draco's hands trailed up his legs and thighs. Harry breathed heavily as Draco bent down and kissed him again. Harry felt Draco's soft lips moving against his own. He tilted his head, capturing the blond's lips over and over again. Draco's lips then broke away and Harry opened his eyes. Draco unbuttoned his own jeans and slid them off his hips. Harry's eyes were drawn to his arousal that was poking through his short gray boxers.

Then Draco leaned forward and kissed his jaw. He began moving down his neck. Harry sighed contently as the lips moved down across his chest. Draco didn't stop until he reached Harry's crotch. His lips ghosted over his arousal before he began to pull his short-briefs down.

Harry's eyes opened when he realized that Draco was going to see him naked. A part of him panicked a little bit. The blond's eyes roved up and down his privates. Harry's cheeks burned. Even his ears seemed to burn in embarrassment. He knew he was a decent size. Ginny had told him so, but he also sensed that Draco was slightly bigger than he was. For some reason, he was suddenly self conscious about that. While his chest was devoid of hair, like Draco's, he had some black hair at the base of his cock.

To Harry's utter surprise, Draco's head bent down and his lips encircled the tip of his penis. Harry's hands clenched the sheets and his mouth parted in pleasure as he felt Draco's warm mouth on him. The blond tongued the tip for a minute before bending down further and taking more into his mouth. Harry groaned and arched his back as his stomach swirled in excitement. The blond moved his hands up the side of Harry's body to his hips and held him firmly. Draco moved his head up and down causing him to moan again. Harry instinctively closed his eyes as the blond moved his mouth on his penis in a way that caused his arousal to grow. Harry's hips attempted to rise but Draco's hands kept him steady.

One of the blond's hands then moved from his hip around to his rear. The fingers caressed his rear and rubbed his coccyx area. Harry groaned as a wave of pleasure hit him. He felt Draco's finger slide down from his coccyx toward his entrance. As the blond continued to languidly move his head up and down his length, he then slipped a finger inside him. The finger felt a little strange until it moved deeper in and hit a pleasurable spot. Harry's eyes shut and he moaned.

Draco slowly pulled away and Harry felt the warmth disappear from his member. He was so hard now he was aching. The blond then sat up on his knees and began to pull his own boxers down. Harry stared at the blond's long penis. He was also very much aroused. There were faint blond hairs at the base of his cock. He was a bit longer than Harry but not quite as thick. The blond was preoccupied pulling off his boxers while Harry stared at his arousal. Once his boxers were on the floor, Draco turned back to him. Their eyes locked and the blond leaned back over him. As he did so he began to move Harry's legs apart. Harry's heart began hammering in his chest.

The blond leaned down and kissed him. As he did so he reached over for his wand, which was lying on the bed near them. He then moved his wand toward Harry's entrance. Within a second something cold and gel-like filled his passage. Draco then waved his wand over his member, coating it with the same clear gel-like substance. He dropped his wand back on the bed. Harry's eyes moved from the blond's arousal to his face. Draco leaned forward, keeping their eyes locked together. Harry could see the desire in his eyes as he leaned over to kiss him. Harry was anticipating their lips meeting, but he did not anticipate the head of Draco's penis up against his entrance. As Draco's lips met his, the head of his penis pushed into his entrance. Harry's gasp was muffled by their kiss. He felt the intrusion. With the lubrication it didn't really hurt, but he could feel the pressure of the large member pushing his entrance open.

Harry's lips parted beneath their kiss and his eyes opened for a second. Draco's eyes were still closed, but the blond groaned in the kiss as he pushed in a little farther. Harry's back arched and his fingers grasped the sheets tightly. He couldn't believe that Draco was entering him. Gazing at the Slytherin, he never thought someone so mysterious and seemingly cold could be so passionate. Draco moaned loudly and grasped the back of his thighs as he pushed forward. Their kiss broke and Draco's head fell next to his. The blond moaned breathlessly in his ear. Draco's hands squeezed his thighs and then moved his legs further apart. Harry could feel the pressure of the large member moving inside him. It suddenly hit a spot that made his back arch and his body tingle. Harry's lips parted and he groaned breathlessly. His head tilted back as Draco's member pushed all the way inside.

Draco moaned by his ear. Harry's arms instinctively came up to wrap around Draco's back. The blond squeezed his thighs again. Slowly he began to move his arousal out. Harry could feel the pressure lessening and he felt his stomach squirm. Draco moved back in at a slightly quicker pace. Harry's eyes opened and he moaned, gripping the blond's back. His hips began to arch upward as Draco moved his erection inside of him. The blond was groaning breathlessly with every movement of his hips. There was an eruption of pleasure that struck him so hard. His legs squeezed Draco's hips and his leg partially wound around the blond's. His body was moving with each thrust and he was moaning loudly. It was much more intense than his love making with Ginny. He could feel Draco's warm member moving in and out, causing friction every time he did.

"Uhggghhh," Draco moaned by his ear. "Uh!"

He began thrusting his hips languidly as he built up a rhythm. Harry was gripping the blond tightly. His head was tilted back and he moaned with every thrust. The pleasure was building so fast. He didn't even care how loud he was. He couldn't stop moaning. His lips parted.

"Uhh! Harry!" Draco exclaimed.

His pace began to quicken.

Harry moaned. "Uhhh!"

Harry felt his body move up and down with each thrust. Draco's voice became louder and he gripped Harry's thighs tightly.

"Draco," Harry groaned as his back arched.

He was so close. His eyes shut. Draco raised his body up a bit as his hands slid from Harry's thighs to his rear. He squeezed his rear, pushing Harry's pelvis up with each thrust as he quickened his pace even more.

"Draco!" Harry exclaimed. His head tilted backward as his fingers dug into the blond's back.

"Ughghhhh!" Draco groaned. The blond tilted his head back and moaned loudly.

Harry cried out when his orgasm struck him. It was so intense he couldn't even keep his eyes open. Draco cried out as well, thrusting into him roughly before Harry felt his hot orgasm explode inside him. The two of them moaned breathlessly before Draco collapsed on top of him. Their hearts were racing and both of them fought to catch their breaths.

Harry eventually opened his eyes. His arms were still wrapped around the blond. His legs were still wrapped around Draco's waist and the blond was still resting between his legs. Draco began to get up and his lips trailed along Harry's neck before he did so. When he rose up half way he then bent his head down and captured his lips in a kiss. Harry closed his eyes briefly, feeling the lips opening against his own. After a heated open-mouthed kiss, Draco sat up. Harry opened his eyes to see the blond grab his wand and wave it at both of them. Instantly, Harry felt the trickling down his leg vanish. His body was no longer sticky, but he was still covered in perspiration. Draco's eyes met his and he could still see a glimmer of desire, probably the remaining euphoria that he was also feeling.

"You want a butterbeer?" Draco asked, standing up.

Harry tried not to stare at his naked body. "Oh, sure."

The blond's lips curled upward. He moved his bangs out of his face and slipped his boxers back on. Then he disappeared from the room to go get their drinks. Harry sat on the bed still processing what had just happened. They had actually had sex. Not only that but it had been amazing. Harry couldn't help thinking that he was glad Draco hadn't been with anyone else. He felt his cheeks heat up at the thought.

Draco returned minutes later with their drinks. Harry had scooted backward on the bed and was resting his back against a pillow. The blond handed him his drink and then climbed up on the bed and sat next to him. Harry took a sip of butterbeer. He was still trying to calm his racing heart.

"Are you in any pain?"

Harry turned to him. "No," he said.

He was grateful that Draco was concerned. It hadn't been as painful as he imagined, probably because of the lubrication. His muscles were a bit sore though.

Draco nodded. "You might be tomorrow. If you are, there's a spell you can use to help."

"Okay," Harry said.

He glanced at the blond wondering what he was thinking about the fact that they had actually gone through with having sex. Was he feeling weird about it? Would it change anything between them or make things awkward? Harry was beginning to worry until Draco scooted over. He leaned over and kissed him. Harry's head was turned sideways. Draco pushed their lips more firmly together, which caused Harry's head to rest back against the pillow. The blond pulled away and stared into his eyes.

"Are you…regretting it at all?"

Harry's face flushed. "No. Are you?"

Draco's lips curled into a sexy smirk. "No."

Harry hesitated and then teasingly asked. "Was it worth the wait?"

He was smiling slightly on the outside, making it seem like a light-hearted question, but on the inside his heart was pounding. Draco turned to him and he smirked back.

"What do you think?"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Am I psychic now?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Well clearly I had a pretty big orgasm so…," he trailed off, leaving the answer unspoken.

Inwardly, Harry felt relief pour through him. He didn't know why it mattered to him that Draco's first time be perfect. After all, he didn't have control over how Draco experienced it. They both sipped their butterbeers in a comfortable silence. Harry was beginning to feel drowsy. Once he finished his butterbeer, he set it down on the bureau next to the bed. Draco had already finished his.

"You ready to start Dimitri's assignment?" Harry asked, stifling a yawn.

"Yeah," Draco said, shrugging. "I don't think it will be too hard."

Harry nodded. He felt warm and comfortable. He didn't even realize he had dozed off until he felt someone pull his body down. Harry opened his eyes groggily to see Draco's face inches from his own. He was pulling him down to the bed.

"You're supposed to sleep _lying_ _down_ in a bed, not upright," he said with a smirk.

Harry mumbled something and then just barely got out the words "shut-up" before his eyes closed again. 

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**Abeham**: Yep! Things are coming together now! Hope you enjoyed the chapter =)

And I hope it was well worth the wait, hehe! Sorry for all the teasing. Now I can stop teasing and just torture you with romance galore, muahhaha! At least Hermione made amends in this chapter, right? I will update asap!

**StubbornBlonde**: Lol! Yes, loads of drama. And now action! I'm glad you're a sucker for romance. I hope this was well worth the wait! =) I updated really fast due to the horrible cliffhanger. I wish I was able to update this fast all the time. I will update asap!

**TragickPast**: Awww, good! I'm so glad you liked the chapter! Hopefully you liked this one too! =) Yeah, I know Hermione's actions weren't so great. At least she made amends in this chapter. I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Lol! I know! Sorry for all the teasing! Hope this chapter was worth the wait. =) You were so right! It was the perfect time for Voldie to attack. It's not too predictable. Well, maybe it was. At least Harry wasn't attacked at the store. It was hopefully a little surprising. Hopefully you were like, 'yay he made it back from the store safely'. And then like 'oh crap! Voldie's right there!' I will update asap!

**bbbreeex**: Lol! Sorry for the cliffhanger, but at least I updated really fast! =) And hopefully this chapter was worth all the torture with the romantic teasing. Hehe! I will update asap!


	20. Falling Deeper

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note****: Sorry for the delay! I had my test this Saturday so it took me longer to update, but now that the test is over (for now anyway) updating will be back to normal. I hope to have the next chapter up by next weekend! Always check my profile for updates. Thanks for being patient! **

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**Chapter 19: Falling Deeper**

Rays of sunshine cascaded into the room, illuminating the bed. Harry groaned softly and rolled over. The sheets were only partly covering his naked body. One of his legs was covered by the sheet, and his crotch, but the rest of him lay bare. Blinking Harry opened his eyes. At first he didn't recognize where he was. He turned his head sideways and saw Draco sleeping. The blond was lying on his side facing him. His blond bangs had cascaded over his forehead and partly over his eyes.

Images from the night before flashed before him. He remembered his heart pounding. And he remembered how warm Draco's body was on top of his as the blond thrust inside of him. Harry breathed out heavily and rubbed his face. Harry slipped out of bed and winced. He was definitely in a bit of pain. It wasn't horrible but it was enough that running wouldn't be pleasant. He slipped on his boxers before heading downstairs to make breakfast. He was in the middle of cooking Occamy eggs when Draco appeared. Harry gazed up at him. His face flushed slightly but he ignored it.

"Hey," Harry said. "I'm making breakfast if you're hungry."

Draco watched him curiously and then shrugged his shoulders, smiling slightly. He sat down and watched as Harry finished cooking them both omelets. Draco made a sound of approval as he took his first bite. Harry inwardly smiled.

"So, where do you think we should start?" he asked, referring to their next assignment.

"I'm thinking The Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil."

"Wow. Brazil. How come?"

Draco took a sip of his hot fizzy tea. "I was doing some research a few days ago when you were off having fun with your friends."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry I took an hour off."

"According to my research," Draco said, ignoring his comment, "I think this rainforest is the most dense. It's got waterfalls and thick forestry and creeks leading through miles of dense trees and bushes. It would be very hard to find. Plus the climate seems perfect for it."

"Okay."

"It's a pretty enormous area to search though."

"Should we split up?" Harry asked.

"Maybe. It might be better that way."

Harry nodded. They both fell into silence and finished their breakfast. A part of him wanted to know if Draco was still thinking about their night together but he was too embarrassed to ask. Once they were finished eating, they both got dressed in their separate rooms and headed out. They still had the black wizard car that Draco had rented for them. Since it was a long ride out (5 hours, which was better than a muggle plane that would take around 11 hours), they brought some snacks and drinks with them.

"I'm glad you didn't return the car yet," Harry said.

Draco shrugged. "I figure we'd need it with all the traveling we do. It's not always convenient to take the train or fly."

"So are we keeping it?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. I think it's a good investment considering our job," he said.

Harry nodded. "I'll pay for half."

Draco glanced at him and then smirked. "Fine with me."

Harry gave him a look. "Do you know anything more about this plant?"

"No, not really. It's not one of the more common plants to pay attention to. I don't even know if it's going to be any good in potions."

"Well Dimitri must want it for some reason," Harry countered.

"I guess," Draco said, sipping his drink.

Harry bit his lip lightly. He cleared his throat. "Draco, are you really upset when I go hang with my friends?"

Draco snorted. "Where did that come from?"

"You always seem cranky when I do anything with them."

"They're not my favorite people," he drawled.

"Well you're not exactly on their welcome list either," Harry said, glancing at him. "I mean, you did do some pretty horrible things to them in the war."

"Yeah, I know!" Draco snapped. "It wasn't entirely my choice."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Draco inhaled deeply. "Look. I messed up big. Voldie knew everything. I don't know why I was surprised. Even with Snape and my mother trying to protect me from screwing up…he just knew that I had failed to kill Dumbledore. He wasn't upset. He was happy Dumbledore was dead so he didn't care, but my father…"

The blond trailed off and glanced down briefly.

"It's okay. Whatever you say I'm not going to judge or tell anyone else. You're safe," Harry said gently.

Gazing at him with worry, Draco turned away. "My father wanted me to get back into _his_ good graces which meant doing some horrible things. He said that if I personally attacked you or one of your close friends it would give me some bonus points. In the beginning, I did what I did to protect my family."

Harry stared at him uncertainly. "You mean from Voldemort?"

Draco nodded. "During our fifth year after that whole incident, you know, the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, my father was imprisoned in Azkaban for a while. That's actually how I became the youngest Death Eater. I had to replace my father. And since my father had been telling Voldie all this time how wonderful I'd be and how perfect I was being at Hogwarts to infiltrate, he finally agreed to give me a chance. But you know that he gave me an impossible task."

Harry swallowed. "To kill Dumbledore."

Draco remained silent for a minute. "He knew I would fail. At least I think he was quite sure. I think he only did it to punish my father for failing and getting captured. Even though I didn't always like the life I was brought up in, that life was all I knew. All I could think about was that if anything happened to my family, there would be no place for me to go. I couldn't trust anyone, even other Death Eaters or those on the 'same side'. There's no loyalty with people like that. Without my mother there to watch out for me and negotiate with other Death Eaters, I would've been killed or given another impossible task that I would've failed. So I did some horrible things. I tortured for him. On his orders," Draco whispered.

"I did it all for survival. During the Battle of Hogwarts, when I stayed behind it was to…capture you. To bring you to him. My father made it clear to me that I had to in order to redeem my family's reputation in his eyes so he could trust my family again. I was disillusioned by the whole Death Eater thing."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked quietly. He was afraid to speak. This was more than Draco had ever shared with him before and he was afraid of breaking it.

"At first I really wanted it. I was excited to prove myself, excited to prove that I was better than you, better than everyone else. I wanted to be respected and admired. But the assignment I was given…I just couldn't handle it. It was too much pressure and too impossible. Near the end of the war I didn't know which side I wanted to be on anymore. I only did things later on for survival, not because I wanted to. Oddly enough Crabbe and Goyle were way more into it than I was. I couldn't stomach it. I couldn't kill Dumbledore. I couldn't capture you."

"So…," Harry started. "When I was captured and taken to your family's manor, you knew it was me, right?"

Draco smiled slightly. "Yeah. I knew it was you. By that time I wasn't sure about the choice I had made to join the Death Eaters. I convinced myself I didn't want you to die, like in the Room of Requirement, because I had to bring you back to him alive, but honestly I think deep down inside I didn't want to hurt you. When you beat him and we were just sitting there in the Great Hall, I suddenly regretted everything. I regretted joining the Death Eaters and listening to my father's delusions. I wanted to take it all back. I mean, you and your friends saved me twice that night even after everything I did."

Harry sat up and leaned over to him. "Draco, I forgive you for all that. I know you were scared for your life, and for your family."

"But I wanted to be a Death Eater! I mean, I worked hard to learn everything I could, Occulmency, torture, anything!"

"That was at first," Harry said. "You changed your mind once you saw what it was really like being a part of that. The only reason you thought you wanted that was because your parents raised you to believe that since you were born. You were raised to think you were better than everyone else, and raised to become Voldemort's subject. So of course you wanted it at first. You had been training for it all your life and you wanted to make your family proud."

Draco bit his lip and turned away. Harry knew the blond was getting emotional and he probably didn't want to break down in front of him. Harry reached over wordlessly and grasped his hand. The blond didn't turn to face him but he folded his fingers around Harry's.

"You've been trying to make amends by working hard and not doing anything else for your parents anymore."

"Just because you forgive me doesn't mean your friends or anyone else will."

"That's true," Harry said as Draco turned to glance at him, "because you have to forgive yourself first."

Harry stared at him earnestly. Draco stared back at him. He could see the blond's eyes glimmer with unshed tears.

"How can you of all people forgive me so easily?"

"Because I understand what it's like to grow up being trained for something," Harry said. "I also understand survival and wanting to protect your family. You did some bad things but you didn't kill anyone directly. You can make up for the things you've done."

Draco turned away. He didn't protest. After a while they discussed strategies as to the best way to find the Icoco Bush. When they finally arrived around noon, Harry was in awe at the beautiful scenery. The lush trees surrounded them and they could hear the creeks and waterfalls nearby. They walked through the first part of the rainforest.

"Do you even know what it looks like?"

"Yeah. I read the description. It's of course dark green so it blends in, but it's got some brown leaves on its body. It has two long sticks for legs that fold up when it's sitting around pretending to be a bush. Mostly it would look like a bunch of fuzzy leaves stacked together."

"Fuzzy?"

"Yeah, they're like smooth velvety-type leaves. So they're different from normal leaves."

Harry sighed. "Okay. Well is there anything that can lure it out?"

"Apparently it doesn't like when people make bad jokes."

Harry smirked. "Well that's right up your alley."

Draco turned around and gave him a sarcastic glare. "My jokes are better than yours."

"Okay, wait I've got one," Harry said.

Draco turned and stopped.

"Why can't you tell blondes knock knock jokes?"

"What?" Draco asked, narrowing his eyes.

Harry ignored his questioning gaze. He probably didn't know what a knock knock joke was.

"Because they leave to go answer the door."

Harry smiled while Draco glared at him.

"That doesn't even make sense!"

"Yes it does," Harry said, grinning.

Draco crossed his arms and smirked. "Fine. I've got one. What has four eyes, an ego and countless dates with death?"

"Hmm….," Harry paused to think about it. "Some sort of creature I don't know about?"

"Oh you know it," Draco said, smirking wider. "A Harry Potter."

Harry's mouth dropped open. "Seriously?!"

Draco burst into laughter at his own joke.

"I don't even wear glasses anymore!"

"Doesn't matter. Everyone knows you used to be a four-eyes," Draco said, snickering.

Suddenly a stick with leaves came out of nowhere and whacked Draco in the face sending him tumbling backward into a creek. Harry couldn't contain his laughter when Draco emerged sopping wet, with his hair in his face and cursing profoundly.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"That wasn't me!" Harry exclaimed.

They both heard a rustling sound and looked up to see a tree moving.

"Is it the plant?" Harry asked.

Draco cursed again and dried himself off with his wand. "How in the world was that funny?"

Harry snickered. "It was a rather entertaining picture of you."

Draco glared. "I guess the only way to lure it out is to continue these bad jokes. Got any other failures?"

Harry sighed irritably. "At least mine was an actual joke. Yours was completely made up."

"And yet it completely outshined yours."

Harry glared. "Fine. How about this, what comes up but never comes down?"

Draco stared at him for a few seconds. "Air?"

"Your age. Ha! That was a good one, right?" Harry asked, snickering.

Something struck him in the back of the head covering his hair in wet goop. Draco burst into laughter as his bangs dangled in front of his eyes dripping with a light burgundy ooze. Wheeling around, Harry barely caught sight of the two sticks for legs wobbling back up into a tree and disappearing. Harry waved his wand to clean himself up. Draco suddenly howled with laughter.

"What's so funny?" Harry asked. He rushed over to the creek that Draco had been pushed into to gaze at his reflection. Although he had technically cleaned the goop from his hair, it had turned his hair bright red.

"That bloody plant!" Harry snapped waving his wand again. "It's not going away! Draco, get your ass off the ground!"

Draco was practically in tears rolling on the ground. He couldn't even get any words out. Harry crossed his arms angrily. Clearly Draco was in no condition to say jokes. Harry stepped back into the middle of the area, standing away from the creek just in case. He held onto his wand tightly.

"I do not eat food, but I enjoy a _light_ meal every day. What am I?" Harry asked loudly. He looked around for the plant. "Give up? A plant! Get it, photosynthesis!"

He saw something in his peripheral vision and he whipped his wand out. The plant, which was no bigger than a small dog landed on top of his wand. Its bushy body rustled as it landed. Harry stared at it in shock for two seconds which was long enough for the plant to reach out and bite his nose.

"Ow! You bugger!" Harry exclaimed rubbing his nose.

The plant made a strange sound and dashed away as Harry fired at it. Tears started pouring out of Draco's eyes as he weakly pointed at Harry. Stomping over to the creek Harry saw that the plant turned his nose green.

"Damnit!" Harry cursed. "Would you get up already?! You're completely useless! I can't get this thing on my own!"

Draco weakly tried to stand, covering his mouth as he stared at Harry's appearance.

"Shut-up!" Harry snapped. He walked over to Draco and grabbed him by the shoulders. Then in one move he wrapped his arm around Draco's neck and wrestled him to the ground.

"Hey! Ow! Get off me!" Draco exclaimed.

Harry bent down towards his ear and whispered. Draco then struggled in his arms. "Hey! Get off!"

Harry stood back up and stared at Draco. They stood a foot apart staring at one another.

"Your turn. Let's see if you can actually do a good joke that might get the plant to appreciate you. I highly doubt it though."

"Oh really?" Draco retorted. "You put me in dry but I get wet. The longer I stay in, the stronger I get. What am I?"

Harry tried to keep his focus on Draco as he kept his senses alert. "Your lack of humor."

Draco glared. "Wrong! Give up?" he smirked.

Harry could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand. He stepped forward nodding to Draco. The blond's eyes narrowed.

"A teabag."

Harry sensed the attack before it happened. He whipped his wand up so fast just as Draco threw himself to the ground. The plant was inches away from Draco and it suddenly froze midair, with its stick-like arms and legs sticking out. It fell to the ground with a soft thud and lay there unmoving. Draco immediately placed another charm on it and then levitated it.

He turned to Harry and smirked. "That was a good plan, pretending to be distracted by one another."

"Thanks," he said with a grin. "You're right. This was an easy assignment."

They both smirked victoriously and carried the plant back to the car. Draco smirked at his still red hair.

"You look ridiculous."

Harry glared. "I wouldn't if you would be more helpful!"

Draco smirked. "I don't know. I'd kind of like to see everyone's face when they see you."

Harry crossed his arms. "Well in that case you can sleep with one eye open tonight and hope you don't come out looking worse than me."

The blond snickered. He murmured a spell and the red hair and green nose vanished.

"Hey! How come that didn't work when I did it?"

"Probably because the plant wasn't paralyzed," Draco said.

Harry gave him a look and then sighed. He gazed around at the scenery.

"It's really beautiful here. I wish we could stay a bit longer."

Draco turned. "Well, we can."

"We have to get the plant back. Those charms aren't going to hold very long," Harry said, looking around them at the lush trees and beautiful flowing creek. He could see a waterfall in the distance and sighed.

"The charm will last a half hour before we have to re-strengthen it. We'll keep it close," Draco said, levitating it with him. "Come on."

Harry began following him up the large lush hill to the top of the waterfall in the distance. It was a beautiful sight looking out over it. The wind was warm and humid and the sun was shining down on them. Harry stared out at the beautiful landscape.

"Wow, this is so amazing."

They both stood atop the waterfall gazing out. Harry glanced over at Draco who turned and met his gaze. They both stared at one another for only a second before they leaned forward and pressed their lips together. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck while the blond wrapped his arms around Harry's torso. Their lips first lightly pressed and then became more passionate. Harry tilted his head, slipping his tongue into Draco's mouth. The blond slid his tongue against his and tightened his grip around him. Their kiss broke and they both exhaled breathlessly. He felt the blond's hand stroke his back just above his waist. Desire flooded through him and Harry grabbed Draco's face, pressing their lips passionately together. They both tilted their heads for a better angle and Harry felt Draco's hand sliding up his bare back. Harry wrapped his arms around his neck again and trailed down the blond's back. He slipped a couple fingers below the waistband of the blond's jeans caressing just above his rear. Draco groaned and grasped Harry's shirt roughly, yanking it upward.

Harry gasped as their kiss broke and Draco pulled his shirt up above his head.

"Draco, we can't – I mean, we're in public," Harry said as his shirt fell to the ground.

The blond bent forward kissing his jaw and then his neck. "No one's here."

Harry glanced over at the paralyzed plant at their feet. "The plant is watching us."

"It doesn't care," Draco said in amusement.

Harry turned to him to protest further but the blond waved his wand and both of their clothes came off of their own accord. Draco crushed their bodies together and Harry groaned. Their arousals met and Harry felt the blond's hands caressing his bare body. The hands moved over his rear, squeezing tightly, before one hand came around to grab his arousal. Harry's gasp was muffled by their kiss. Draco's hand gripped his erection, sliding upward and then back down. Harry moaned, tightening his hold around Draco. Harry then felt one of the blond's fingers rub across the tip of his arousal. His lips parted and he groaned moving his hips with each pleasurable stroke. Harry's hands began to caress Draco's body, sliding down his hips and to the back of his thighs. The blond moaned loudly and thrust his arousal against Harry's. As he did so the hand that was stroking Harry's arousal moved to his rear. Harry hissed slightly with pain as a finger slipped inside him.

Draco broke their kiss. "Are you in pain?"

"I'm a little sore," Harry said, wincing.

The blond nodded. He murmured a spell and Harry felt the pain ebb away.

"That should help. If it bothers you tomorrow you can do it again."

Harry nodded. "Thanks."

Draco moved his hand up Harry's back. "I guess you'll be taking me this time."

Harry's eyes widened slightly. He stared into Draco's eyes, noting the glimmer of desire. He didn't expect Draco to offer himself up so easily. He thought for sure Draco would always want to be in control. Before Harry could respond, Draco crushed their lips together. The blond began stroking him again and Harry felt his desire build until he thought he couldn't take it anymore. Draco backed up pulling Harry with him until his back rested against a nearby tree. Their tongues intertwined and Harry felt their arousals touch. He moaned when he felt Draco spread his legs so Harry could rest between them. The blond rose one of his legs up and wrapped it around Harry's.

Their kiss deepened and Harry felt his arousal twitch. Draco broke away to murmur the lubrication spell on Harry's member. Harry then took Draco's wand from him leading the wand to the blond's entrance just like he had done. He nervously said the spell. His heart was pounding. Draco dragged his hand up through Harry's hair and pushed Harry's face down to his in a heated kiss. Harry trailed his hands up the back of Draco's thighs, squeezing gently. He then positioned his arousal at the blond's entrance. Just as Draco's tongue met his, Harry pushed his arousal forward. Draco groaned within their kiss as Harry began to penetrate him. The feeling was intense. Harry tried to go slow, but the pleasure was building so fast. He moved his hips as he began entering, thrusting his erection gently inside. Draco's head fell back against the tree as he moaned. Their kiss broke and Harry gasped breathlessly as he felt his erection go all the way in. He crushed his lips against Draco's and thrust deeply without pulling out. The blond's leg that was wrapped around him tightened.

Harry began to move out and then back in slowly, just as he had done his first time with Ginny. As the pleasure began to build, he felt his control slipping. With Ginny he had been slow and gentle the whole time since it had been both their first times. With Draco his thrusting became deeper. Soon he was gripping Draco's rear thrusting in and out continuously. Draco's head was tilted back. Harry opened his eyes briefly to see the blond's eyes were closed and his face contorted in pleasure. The blond moaned and he felt a wave of desire hit him. Harry groaned loudly leaning his weight against Draco as he thrust. The blond wrapped his arms around him and Harry's grip on his rear tightened. Draco didn't seem to notice or didn't seem to be bothered by it. Harry's lips parted. It felt so good, so much better than with Ginny. He was gasping as he moaned, thrusting with a slightly faster pace.

"Uhhhh! Uh!" Draco moaned, tightening his grip around him.

"Draco!" Harry exclaimed.

He thrust roughly as his moans became louder. His orgasm struck him hard. Draco moaned loudly and Harry felt the blond's orgasm sprinkle his torso. He hardly noticed though as he felt his orgasm rush out of him. He thrust a couple more times riding out his orgasm before he stopped. They both were breathing heavily. Harry was resting his body against Draco's for a few minutes before he finally released his hold. He pulled out of him staring at Draco in awe. He couldn't believe they had had sex again. More than that he couldn't believe that he had taken Draco. The blond hadn't even protested. Their bodies were covered with perspiration.

"Are you in pain?" Harry asked after a moment.

Draco opened his eyes. "I'm fine."

Harry turned to see the plant twitching on the ground. Harry summoned his wand and cast another paralyzing charm on it. They both waved their wands over their bodies to clean up and then they got dressed and headed back to the wizard car. By the time they reached the car Harry felt worn out. On the way back they mostly listened to music. They were both still euphoric and tired.

Instead of going home they stopped by Hellebore to drop off the plant to Dimitri who was more than ecstatic to see them.

"Welcome back! I'm so glad you're both okay!" Dimitri exclaimed shaking both of their hands vigorously.

Clearly he had heard about what happened with Voldemort. That meant pretty soon the world would know. Harry was grateful the lived in a protected place.

"You two have proven yourselves above and beyond anyone I have ever hired," Dimitri boasted. He beamed at them proudly.

Draco was smirking delightfully. He appreciated the praise.

"I hope you two don't mind but I want to throw you both a celebration for your victory against You-Know-Who once again!"

"Er, thanks," Harry said. "How did you know?"

"Word gets around. I have some contacts in the Ministry so I'm obviously one of the first to know. No one else here knows yet but the Ministry will be announcing what happened to the public tomorrow."

Draco and Harry exchanged glances.

"Don't worry. The celebration won't be until after their announce it. So I was thinking the day after tomorrow we could have it."

Harry and Draco both nodded.

"Wonderful! Good work on this assignment. The Icoco Bushes may be harmful but it's no easy task catching them. That's why I want to study them more up closely instead of in their habitat. Now I'll have that opportunity. You both go home now and get some well-deserved rest."

They both walked out with their pay in high spirits. Draco especially looked pleased. After the talk they had had Harry was grateful that the blond was happy with himself, that he was finally doing good and getting recognized for it. When they got back home they both were starving and decided to make an early dinner. As they sat in the living both lying on their separate couches eating and drinking a butterbeer, Harry glanced over at the blond. He realized in that moment how happy he was being with Draco. He looked forward to just being able to relax at home with him.

"So," Draco said, breaking the silence.

Harry glanced over at him. "What?"

The blond's lips curled upward. "Was I better than Ginny?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "If you're asking if I had a bigger orgasm with you," he said, as Draco gazed at him, "then yes."

The blond's smirk widened and he raised an eyebrow. "Really?" he drawled seductively.

Harry just shook his head in amusement. "Well sex with you is different. It's just…"

"What?" Draco asked, staring at him.

Harry turned to look at him. "If sex is better with you, if I'm gay, I don't understand why I was never attracted to guys before now."

Draco shrugged. "Being attracted to me doesn't necessarily mean you're gay."

"It doesn't? I thought that was the definition."

"If you're not attracted to most guys in general, you're probably not gay," Draco said. "I don't consider myself technically gay either. I've been attracted to girls before. I think gay means that you're only attracted to the same sex."

Harry raised his arm up over his head. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

They were both silent for a minute.

"I can't believe Dimitri's throwing us a victory party," Draco said.

Harry smiled. "I think you're excited about it."

The blond gave him a look. "What do you mean?"

"I can tell you like the idea."

Draco snorted. "Well it's better than the last victory against Voldie. I was just sitting there in the Great Hall with my family feeling like an outsider. At least this time I'll be included in the celebration."

Smiling softly Harry nodded. "Yeah."

"Don't give me that pitiful look, Potter," he drawled.

Harry glared at him. "Don't call me Potter."

Draco just smirked in response and took a swig of his butterbeer. Harry sat up.

"Oh hey, I almost forgot."

"What?"

"Neville responded to my owl about meeting with Davin Rigelsby. He said that's fine. He's meeting with him in three days so we're going to go to Scotsdale to join them."

"Good. Maybe we'll finally get a lead on this stupid plant-creature that no one seems to know anything about," Draco drawled.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I hope so."

A little while later they both went upstairs to go to sleep. Harry approached his door and then turned around.

"Night," he said.

Draco's lips curled into a seductive smirk. "If you get lonely, you can come to my room anytime."

Harry smiled in amusement. "Gee, thanks."

The blond then turned and walked up to his room. Harry went to his room and sighed heavily. He was tired but he wanted to take a hot shower. He began to get undressed. His thoughts moved from various things. He began picturing his first time with Draco and then his first time taking Draco that day. As the images flashed in his mind he felt his body heat up. He tried to calm his racing heart by thinking about Dimitri telling everyone there at Hellebore about what they had done. No doubt the entire building would be invited, which meant Cyprian would be there. Harry suddenly stopped cold. That meant Jace would be there as well. He would be there in the same room as him and Draco. Harry was suddenly dreading the celebration.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

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**TO REVIEWERS:**

**Padfootette**: Awww, thanks! =) I'm glad you liked it! Hope this chapter was just as good. Things have cooled down for a bit so enjoy it while it lasts, hehehehe!

**messyhxdlovers**: Yay! I'm so glad you liked it! =) I'm glad it was worth the wait. Yes, they finally did it! Lol! Now they've gotten beyond the point of no return, muhahaha! And the romance should be really fun from here on out, hehe. Yep! I'll be focusing on some other things, like finding the plant-creature, and of course Harry's friends finding out slowly but surely, as well as Jace. Yes, Voldie is still in the background. He's clinging on for dear life. I will update asap!

**Abeham**: I'm so glad you liked the chapter! I'm sorry the idea about the rings was confusing, but I'm glad you liked it. Basically when they put the rings on in the beginning of Chapter 19 before Harry even went out to the store, Harry looked like Draco (due to the ring's illusion) and Draco looked like him. So when Voldie attacked he got them confused because they looked like each other, so he captured Draco because he thought it was Harry. And the dragon's fire just strengthened the rings a bit. Harry used a spell to allow the rings to absorb some of the flame. It was just so the illusion would last longer than an hour. Yep, Hermione has apologized, but she hasn't completely forgiven Draco for all the things he did as a Death Eater, but she's more forgiving than Ron. Yes…you will have to wait and see for his reaction. You are absolutely right about the foreshadowing =) Thanks a lot! Glad the chapter was worth the wait! I will update asap!

**Starr** **Whompin**: Lol! Sorry for the rollercoaster ride during this chapter. Hopefully that was a good "oh my God" reaction you had. =) Hope you enjoyed it! And I hope it was worth the wait, with Draco and Harry going all the way. Now the romance will be even more fun to do! Hehe. I will update asap!

**StubbornBlonde**: Yay! I'm glad you liked the smut! And I'm glad it was worth the wait. =) Hope you liked this chapter too! =) I will update asap! Awww, thank you! Unfortunately I only have time to work on this story and I can't promise any new stories in the new future. I'm starting a new job in the interim while I'm passing my national exams for my field so I'll be even busier than before, but I will at least finish this story. Thanks! *-*

**bbbreeex**: Awww, yay! I'm so glad you thought it was worth the wait! That relieves me! I know people were anxious for it, but I'm glad you thought it was believable this way. Yep! The focus is now breaking the unbreakable vow with bits of different things going on that I foreshadowed too regarding other things/people =) Aww, thanks! That's such a big compliment. I'm so glad that you like the plot! I hope it continues to be intoxicating and alluring. I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Yep! You were definitely on the right track in terms of when Voldie would attack. Lol! Yep when he was attacking Draco, Draco actually looked like Harry so he thought he had Harry the whole time. Yeah, poor Draco-poo. He's all healed now though. I will update asap!

**HPmeghan7474**: Yay! I'm so glad you thought it was hot! That was my intention =) Yeah, and even though they've had sex now they will still continue to grow closer. Don't worry there will be plenty of protective!Harry and protective!Draco going on throughout their romance. I'm a sucker for that stuff too. =) There has been a little bit of that with Draco. It's more subtle with him due to his personality, but it will continue to grow. I will update asap!

**wac67**: Thanks so much! I'm soooooooo happy you really like the story so far! =) I'm glad to hear you like the writing style and the way the romance is going. There will be more romance to come! I will update asap!

**Joh (guest):** Awww, thanks so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. Wow! That's so awesome that you stayed up reading the last couple chapters. That's impressive! Thank you! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter too. They finally get a little bit of a break from near-death experiences. And don't worry even though they've had sex now the romance will still continue to grow and grow. =) I will update asap!

**Guest**: Awww, thank you! Yay! I'm happy you're liking it so far! I hope this chapter was worth the wait! =)

**Carling****:** Awwww, thanks Carling! You're so sweet! =) I think my exam went well. I won't know for 6-8 weeks but at least it's over for right now. The next one, if I didn't pass, isn't until May so updating will be a lot easier from now on. Wow! I'm so flattered that my stories are the most "textured" and interesting to you! I'm sure there are a lot of amazing authors out there. I wish I had more time to read fanfiction. But I'm so glad you like my take on the HP world is unique. I try to be as unique as possible and make as much up as I can. Sorry for the long wait! I just switched jobs and am not used to commuting and working 40 hours instead of 30, plus the studying but things are much better now. Less hectic. So I hope to update by next weekend! Thanks for being so patient! Hope you're doing well! =)

**Bindy Sue (guest)**: Thanks for your feedback. And I understand what you mean about Hermione. Draco did horrible things yes, but it is clear J.K. Rowling shows he was reluctantly helping the Death Eaters in the end. It's why they avoided Azkaban completely in the books at the end, because they switched allegiances at the end. And yes, in the very beginning he was bragging to his friends about it. At first he wanted to be a Death Eater because his family brought him up for that. I hope this chapter explains everything, or most everything. He has a lot of making up to do, but Harry can see that he's trying to make amends.

And yes, I understand that Hermione would be upset with Draco, and Ron would be even more upset. Hermione's character, as J.K. Rowling said in an interview, is much more compassionate. She never wanted to fight in a war. She's not "like a Bellatrix" (this is J.K. Rowling's own words). She is a studious girl who loves books, so that's why J.K. Rowling said studying magic versus using it in battle is how Hermione is. That means, to me, that her character is more forgiving. She can see that Draco has changed. She can see that he really does have a good heart underneath it all and that he's trying hard to make amends for what he's done. That's why she said to Harry that she "supports" them. She doesn't quite forgive Draco for everything yet. I hope that helps you understand where I'm coming from. This will be clearer when everything with Harry's friends comes to the "breaking point".


	21. A Foreshadow

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note:** Sorry again for the delay. I'm really trying to update within 1-2 weeks instead of 3. Sometimes I'm just too tired to write. It should be better though because the holidays are coming up and we have some days off! Wahooo!

I know you all are also dying to know what's going to happen with the vow, but I just love this story so much that I'm taking my time. It may have more chapters than I originally anticipated. I just wouldn't be happy if anything was rushed so bear with me! I promise it will be worth the wait!

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**Chapter 20: A Foreshadow**

The night before the celebration Harry tossed and turned. He didn't know why he was worried about Jace being there. After all, Draco had told him they were finished and Draco was the one who broke it off. Then again Jace was a wizard too. What if he tried to take Draco back magically? No. He wouldn't do that. He had plenty of opportunities to do that previously and never did. Harry sighed irritably and then groaned into his pillow. He was never going to get to sleep.

A part of him thought about going to Draco's room but he felt too embarrassed. Although their dating had been moving along rather quickly, he still wasn't sure where it was going. Would they still be together after they broke the vow? Harry slid out of bed and went downstairs. He grabbed a butterbeer and lay down on the couch. He turned the fireplace on since he only had his pajama pants on. He lay there for a while thinking about how drastically things had changed with Draco. He hadn't ever imagined letting the blond see him naked let alone taking Draco. He tried not to think about it too much.

He fell asleep for a little while and then woke up feeling groggy. He went upstairs to take a shower. He threw his clothes on the floor and stepped into the bathroom. The hot water seemed to soothe his nerves. He stood in the shower for a few minutes longer. When he emerged Draco was standing in his room. Harry was still damp but he only had a towel around his waist. Draco was staring at the pictures on his bureau, one of them of his parents with him as a baby.

"Hey," Harry said.

Draco turned to glance at him. He noticed Harry glance at the picture. He gestured to it.

"Your mum's pretty."

Harry smiled. "Thanks."

Draco nodded. "So what are you wearing for the party?"

"Not sure." Harry hesitated, thinking about Jace and his leather jacket. "I was thinking about the new Demiguise leather pants and the new shirt."

Draco raised his eyebrows and smirked. "That's a bit daring for you, isn't it?"

Harry shrugged. "It's not inappropriate or anything. Besides, it is a special occasion."

"I suppose," Draco said.

"What about you?"

"I'll probably wear my new jeans and shirt."

Harry nodded. Draco remained there so Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Are you going to stand there and watch me get dressed?"

Draco smirked. "Maybe," he drawled.

Harry's heart skipped a beat as Draco closed in on him. The blond's eyes trailed over his body. Harry was still nervous about being naked in front of him. Draco reached out to brush away a drop of water from his shoulder. His finger then ghosted down Harry's arm causing goosebumps to rise.

"When we get back home from the party," Draco said, trailing his fingers to his bare side, "we can have our own celebration." His fingers came across the area of his stomach just above the towel. He traced the area all the way across. Harry could feel his body reacting. Just as soon as it happened, Draco pulled away and headed for the door. The blond glanced over his shoulder and smirked before he closed it behind him.

Shivering, Harry got dressed in his new Demiguise leather pants and new maroon-colored shirt. It had a fancy cut-out pattern in the arms and low cut in the front where it tied in a crisscross pattern but revealed only a peek of his chest.

After getting dressed he went downstairs for breakfast. Draco had already made himself something. Harry stared at his outfit in awe. He was wearing his new black jeans that had silver thread mixed in. There was a small dragon traced out in the silver thread on one of the back pockets, his signature. The jeans were made of a stretchy but snug material that outlined his body nicely. He was wearing his new silver-colored shirt that was made out of a thicker velvety material. It opened a bit at the chest revealing some skin. It was long-sleeved and hugged his arms perfectly. It wasn't too tight or too loose. Draco noticed him staring and smirked.

"What do you think?"

"It's really nice," Harry said, flushing. "I don't remember you getting that."

Draco shrugged. "I bought a lot of new clothes. This seemed like the perfect occasion to wear it."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. So…do you feel awkward at all?"

"Awkward?" he asked, glancing at him with a puzzled look.

"Yeah, you know, because Jace and Cyprian and everyone will be there."

"Oh, I see. You're worried about my ex," he said. His lips curled upward in a grin.

"It's not that. I know you guys are done and I mean if you really wanted to go back to him, if that's what you wanted, I wouldn't stop you. It's your life and you can do what you want. I wouldn't want to force someone to be with me."

Draco snorted. "I wouldn't want to go back to him even if I wasn't with someone."

Harry's shoulders relaxed. "Yeah."

"So have you talked with Hermione since…you know?"

Harry shook his head. "No. I think she's trying to be supportive now. It might take her some time. Ron I'm not sure about. He may never accept it."

Draco snorted. "Like I care what he thinks."

Harry just sighed. That wasn't going to end well. He could feel it. Harry made himself breakfast and joined Draco out in the living room. They both ate in a comfortable silence.

"We're seeing Davin Rigelsby tomorrow right?" Draco asked.

"Yeah. Hopefully he's got some insight into that mysterious plant-creature."

"If he doesn't, no one will," Draco replied. "He's one of the most famous Herbologists of all time."

Harry nodded. They both relaxed for a bit on the couch. Harry decided to look again in the Forbidden Library for anything concerning the plant-creature. While he didn't find anything on it, he found an interesting dark arts book on curses. While he was reading on the couch, Draco decided to take time to polish his broom with the new broomkit he had gotten recently.

By the afternoon they both left by broom to go to Hellebore for the celebration. Harry was afraid of what Dimiti might concoct, being since he was a rather enthusiastic wizard. Despite knowing this Harry was still not prepared.

They arrived at the building to see that the entire building was charmed with lights that flickered all around in a bright white color. Their names were glimmering in the air above it. Harry nervously glanced at Draco who shrugged. They both walked inside to see the entire lobby filled with floating candles that seemed to point them in the direction of the elevator. There were streamers on the ceilings as well. They stepped into the elevator and all of a sudden their names appeared, glowing above them.

"Wow," Harry said, watching as his name flickered in red and gold. Draco's name flickered in green and silver, their colors from Hogwarts.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "He went all out."

"That's an understatement," Harry murmured.

The elevator led them up to the top floor, the 20th floor. Harry gasped when he saw the walkway. Normally it was encased in a charmed glass that allowed the sun to stream through. Instead it was completely without glass, just a decorated, lit-up walkway hundreds of feet in the air. The warm May breeze greeted them as they walked across it. As they did the lights on the walkway changed colors. When they reached the golden double doors, they paused and then pushed them open. The sound of fireworks blasted nearby and Harry nearly jumped in reaction. His heart skipped a beat. Draco had noticed him twitch and snickered quietly. The colored fireworks blazed above them as they entered as cheers erupted. All 153 employees of the building were there. There were so many faces that Harry didn't recognize.

It was unnerving as they were suddenly bombarded with people who wanted to shake their hands. Harry saw familiar faces. Dimitri waved at them and greeted them. There was a table set up nearby in the same room that they had been in before except that the table had quadrupled in size. There was more food on the table than Harry could have pictured. Everything from fried Augurey (Irish Phoenix) eggs to Horklump pie. Harry remembered Horkumps were garden pest eaten by gnomes that resembled a spiky pink mushroom.

Harry caught sight of Jace who was eyeing him from the back. He gave him a smile and a nod. Harry smiled back politely. He saw Cyprian leaning against a wall in the corner. He looked exhausted like he didn't want to be there. After the crowd of people finally stopped bombarding him and began taking their seats, Cyprian finally came over to him.

"Hey Cyprian," he said.

Cyprian smiled weakly. "Hey Harry. Congrats on the defeat of the Dark Lord, again."

Harry smiled. "Thanks. I didn't do it alone though, either time."

Cyprian nodded quietly.

"Are you feeling all right?"

"Actually I haven't been feeling that well lately. Not sure what it is. I've been going to St. Mungo's for checkups but they don't know what's wrong so they can't really give me anything. Hopefully it's nothing too serious."

"Oh, yeah, I hope not."

"Sorry I can't stay. I wanted to congratulate you both though."

"Yeah, thanks. I understand. You should get some rest."

Cyprian nodded. "Thanks. I'll see you later. Tell Draco I said congrats."

"Okay," Harry said, waving.

Cyprian left and Harry felt a twinge of guilt. He really didn't look well but he wondered if that was the only reason he wasn't staying. Draco was distracted with talking to other people so he didn't notice. Harry felt someone approaching him from behind and he turned. Jace grinned at him.

"Hey Harry."

"Jace," he said, nodding. "How are you?"

He shrugged. "Can't complain. How are you and Draco?"

Harry had the urge to roll his eyes. He was obviously fishing for details on how their relationship was going.

"Good. Just been busy."

"I can see that," he said. "Defeating the Dark Lord together and all. Hey, maybe they'll put Draco on a chocolate frog card."

"Maybe," Harry said, smiling.

"Look, I don't want this to be awkward or anything," he said quietly.

"It's not," Harry said quickly.

Jace hesitated and nodded. "Oh, good. And hey, you know, if you two are ever bored we can make it a three-some," he whispered.

Harry swallowed his spit down the wrong pipe and started choking. Jace smirked in amusement. Draco glanced over and gave him a curious look but Harry just covered his mouth and turned away. It took him a minute to get back to normal. Jace had already walked away and was approaching Draco. Harry watched him go up to the blond. Draco nodded toward him and seemed to greet him. The blond didn't look especially thrilled to see him. He appeared very neutral. Harry couldn't hear what they were saying but he decided to distract himself by talking to people he didn't know.

"Hey," Harry said, approaching a small group. There were two girls and three guys.

"Hey!" one of the girls exclaimed, throwing her arms around him.

Harry was taken aback and nearly toppled over. She pulled away and pushed her wavy auburn hair out of her face.

"I'm Tessamé [Tess-a-may]. You can call me Tess if you want."

"Nice to meet you."

The others began introducing themselves. The boy named Ronan had short light brown hair with side bangs and bright hazel eyes. Another boy named Asher also had very short light brown hair and brown eyes. The last boy, who looked several years older than him, named Malik had short dark brown hair with bangs and light blue eyes. The other girl Maisie had long, straight black hair and dark blue eyes.

"Which floor do you guys work on?" Harry asked.

"Me, Maisie and Asher work on the tenth floor," Malik said, grinning. "We work on any and all interviews necessary for each topic."

"Yeah we get to meet famous wizards and witches who are experts in their fields!" Maisie exclaimed. "It's loads of fun."

"That's not all we do though," Asher chimed in. "We also take care of all the plants and other creatures that come in. There are people that do tests and study them and then there's people like us who feed them and nurture them."

"Although it can get dangerous if you're not careful," Maisie said.

"Oh please," Tess said, waving her hand. "By that time you already know everything it does because of all the studies done on them. Me and Ronan work on the eleventh floor and we bind all the books in our fancy covers, help sell them, and we have to go through and edit them to make sure there are no grammatical errors or something out of place."

"Yeah, which is tedious," Ronan said, crossing his arms.

"Quit whining," Malik said. "It's not all bad."

Ronan gave him a look. "Whatever."

"They're brothers, don't mind them," Tess said. "And of course we know all about you, Harry! I still couldn't believe it when I heard you were working here."

"Give him some space, will ya?" Asher said.

"I'm fine, really," Harry said, smiling.

"So what was it like, you know, defeating You-Know-Who?" Ronan asked.

"Not pleasant," Harry said.

They all laughed.

"Yeah I can see that," Malik said. "You'll have to visit our floor some time and see what we do."

"Sure, that'd be great," Harry said.

They all began sitting down at the table to eat lunch. Champagne floated to each of them as they sat down. Harry sat in between Malik and Tess. Draco sat diagonal from him. Jace was seated next to Draco. Ronan, Asher and Maisie sat nearby. Dimitri silenced them all for a toast, making Harry and Draco both stand. Once the toast was over they all cheered and began to dig into the food. Harry was thankfully distracted by Malik and Tess talking to him so he didn't pay much attention to Jace.

"Hey Harry," Malik said, leaning over. "Want to try some fried Dementor fingers?"

Harry's eyes widened at the long blackened meat offered to him. All he could picture was a Dementor's face coming toward his with its mouth open, ready to suck his soul out.

"Er, no thanks," Harry said.

"Oh come on, it's a delicacy," Malik said, picking up the long oddly shaped meat and taking a bite. Some of the blackened bits began peeling off as he chewed.

Harry made a face and suddenly Malik, Maisie, Asher, Ronan and Tess all started laughing. Everyone else glanced down at their end, including Jace and Draco.

"Did we miss a joke?" Dimitri asked, grinning. His face was slightly flushed from the champagne.

"Malik told Harry these were fried Dementor fingers," Asher said loudly through his laughter.

Everyone else began laughing as well. Harry glanced around and stopped to look at Draco who was trying to contain his laughter.

"You're so clueless, Potter," Draco drawled in amusement. "We would never eat Dementors."

Harry glared at him. For one, he called him Potter. He did that when he was teasing him sometimes but it seemed a little impersonal, especially in front of Jace. While he knew Draco wanted to keep their relationship private from their co-workers, they were still friends. Perhaps it was just the way that Jace was smirking that made it seem worse than it was.

"How should I know? You eat Horklump pie and fried Kappa Demon parts."

"Fried Kappa is a select taste," Malik said. "Dementors are basically made up of death. It would be worse than eating Inferi."

"Ewww!" Maisie exclaimed. "I don't even wanna think about it."

"All right," Dimitri said, smiling. "Harry may not have been born in our world but it's not fair to take advantage of him like that."

"But it's so much fun," Malik said, sniggering.

Harry glared. "You just wait, Malik."

Malik raised his eyebrows in response. Harry glanced away to see Draco staring at him with furrowed eyebrows. Jace was staring at Draco for a second, but then he glanced over at Harry who looked away just in time.

"Yeah, besides, we're celebrating Harry again for saving the world," Maisie said. "You're not allowed to tease him today. And Harry, don't take it personally."

"Yeah, Malik is a pain in the ass towards everyone," Tess added.

Malik just grinned proudly. Ronan just rolled his eyes.

"Hey! I think Harry and Draco should tell us stories about how they captured the Blue Snargaluff!" Asher exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Tess exclaimed.

"And also how they survived the Inferi attack," Dimitri said.

Almost all heads turned at once.

"What Inferi attack?" Tess exclaimed, standing up out of her chair and glancing back and forth between them.

Dimitri's eyes widened when he realized what he let slip. "Whoops. Sorry boys. Must be the champagne."

Harry inwardly groaned. He hated the attention, but Draco didn't seem to mind it.

"Harry, tell us!" Tess exclaimed.

"I think Draco will do a better job of telling it," Harry said, glancing at him.

Draco gazed back and him and smiled. Jace noticed the exchange. Draco began explaining what happened, or rather his own telling of what happened. He left out the part about Harry sensing that something was there while Draco basically told him he was crazy. When it finally came time for dessert, Harry tried a slice of the Horklump pie. It was crispy on the outside almost like a cooked marshmallow and was moist and caramel-flavored on the inside. He found he really enjoyed it. Draco had gone for the Quaza Plant creamy ice cream made from the sweet nectar of the Quaza Plant. It was apparently very good in nutrients, although in large quantities made one levitate in their sleep. He wondered if Draco's two large helpings would be enough.

After the dessert and more conversations about their adventures as well as other strange plants their coworkers had come across, questions started coming up about what will happen to Voldemort since being captured.

"He's basically dying so hopefully soon he'll be dead," Draco said, glancing at Harry.

Harry nodded, swallowing a large gulp of his hot drink. He nearly spit it out. He didn't want them to know that Voldemort was still hanging on and the Minister had no idea why it was possible or how to stop it.

"Either way he's been defeated," Dimitri said. "Let's make a toast to the future of wizard kind now with the promise of no more dark days."

"Cheers!" Various voices chimed.

The celebration ended shortly after and Harry and Draco said goodbye to everyone. Harry noticed Jace gave Draco a hug goodbye. Then Jace went over to him and reached out to shake his hand. Harry shook his hand politely.

"Nice to see you again, Harry," Jace grinned.

"You too," Harry said.

"Hope to see you both soon. And hey, I have to admit, you both are a pretty hot couple. Don't forget about my offer," he said with a wink.

Harry flushed. "Er, okay."

Jace waved and disappeared out the door. As everyone headed out, Harry could feel the alcohol consuming him. He was definitely borderline tipsy. Draco walked over to him just as Dimitri approached them and wrapped his arms around both of them.

"You two are amazing employees! Keep up the hard work! I'm afraid I won't have another assignment for a little while. You both are just so fast with completing them!"

"It's okay. It will be nice to have a break," Draco said quickly.

Dimitri laughed. "Indeed. Well check back in one to two weeks. And enjoy your well-deserved break!"

"Thanks," Harry said, smiling.

They both walked out and headed toward the elevator.

"I didn't see Cyprian here," Draco said as they took the elevator down to the lobby.

"He went home early. He said he wasn't feeling well," Harry said.

Draco stared at him. "Oh. What's wrong?"

"I don't know. It's just…when I saw Cyprian last time at the opening of his parents' new store, he also seemed tired and a bit under the weather, but he can't be still sick from then. Or at least I hope not. He looked a little worse today."

"I'm sure it's nothing serious. Besides he's got rich parents and they'll do whatever it takes."

"Yeah…," Harry trailed off. He had a bad feeling that he couldn't shake. He wasn't sure if it was just because he was still on edge since everything with Voldemort.

They both managed to get home by broom without falling off or crashing into anything. Draco nearly hit a bird but thankfully the bird had enough sense to get out of the way. When they got home it was already dinner time but neither of them was hungry. They had eaten way too much. Harry yawned and stretched his arms over his head.

"Well that wasn't bad," Harry said, plopping down on the couch.

Draco grinned. "Yeah. I noticed you made some new friends."

Harry glanced at him and then shrugged. "I suppose. They seemed nice."

"You going to go their floor some time?"

"Yeah maybe. Why? You want to come?"

Draco shrugged. "Doesn't matter."

Harry stared at him suspiciously. "So, how was it seeing Jace?"

"It was fine. Like I said we left things on good terms," Draco said, taking off his shoes. "He asked me how things were going and said we should get a Butterbeer some time and catch up."

Harry opened his mouth to question the motive, but he shut it. He trusted Draco and he didn't want to appear controlling or jealous. He just nodded in response.

"What time are we meeting Davin Rigelsby tomorrow?" Draco asked, approaching him.

"Neville said to meet them at the café at ten so – what are you doing?"

Draco had proceeded to climb on top of him as he was still lying on the couch. Draco put his legs around either side of Harry's waist and placed his hands above Harry's head.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Draco drawled in a sultry tone. He bent down and kissed Harry's neck.

Sucking in a breath, Harry tried not to squirm. Draco moved his lips softly over his neck kissing until he finally raised his head back up and pressed their lips together. The fireplace was flickering in the background providing a little bit of warmth. Although it was May and the weather was warming up, it was still cool at night. The fire also made the place feel more homey. Harry tilted his head upward as Draco kissed him languidly. Draco lied down on top of him so their bodies were pressed together. Draco trailed a hand down Harry's body across his new leather pants, stroking the soft material.

Harry felt Draco's fingers massaging his thigh and slowly going up to his hip. The blond's fingers slowly slipped beneath his shirt and began pushing it up. Harry opened his eyes and Draco detached their lips briefly. He pulled Harry's shirt over his head and threw it on the floor before capturing his lips again. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck. Their kissing deepened and Harry could feel Draco's arousal pressing against his own. He slowly trailed his hands down Draco's back. The blond made a sound in the back of his throat as Harry grasped the ends of his shirt.

Draco pulled away and allowed Harry to remove his shirt. The blond then unbuttoned his new jeans and slid them off. He bent down briefly to capture his lips and then proceeded to kiss down Harry's chest. His fingers reached the buttons of Harry's new pants and he unbuttoned them and slid them down his hips. The pants were tight on his body and as Draco gradually slid them down, his boxers dragged down a bit revealing the crease of his pubic bone. Once they were both clad in their boxers, Draco bent down toward him. Harry could see Draco's eyes flickering as they reflected the dim light coming from the fireplace. That was the only light that lit up the living room. Besides that they were surrounded by darkness.

Harry's heart was pounding in his chest as Draco began to spread his legs apart so he could rest in between them. Then the blond leaned down and kissed him. After a long, languid kiss, Draco pushed his tongue in his mouth. Harry made a sound in the back of his throat as Draco's tongue massaged his own. Draco's hands trailed down Harry's bare arms, caressing him. Harry had once again wrapped his arms around Draco's back. The blond thrust his pelvis against Harry's causing their arousals to touch. They both groaned. Harry felt his arousal twitch in response. Draco moved his hands to around Harry's back, squeezing them underneath him. He thrust again and again causing Harry to tilt his head back.

Their kiss broke briefly so they could catch their breath. When Harry opened his eyes he saw Draco hovering above him with pleasure written on his features. His body was moving back and forth as he rubbed their arousals together. The sight of Draco's expression and the way his body moved caused more heat to rush to his groin. Harry moaned as he felt the pleasure building. Draco paused in his thrusting and moved his lips against Harry's languidly before he trailed his hands back down Harry's back toward his hip. Slowly, he began pulling down Harry's boxers. Harry could feel the air hit his arousal. His boxers were thrown on the floor and in seconds Draco's boxers joined them. The blond trailed a hand up Harry's leg to the back of his thigh as he leaned back down on top of him. The second that Draco's arousal touched his own without any cloth, Harry's back arched upward.

Draco moaned, gripping the back of Harry's thigh tightly. He rubbed his arousal against Harry's causing them both to groan loudly. Taking in a shaky breath, Harry tilted his head to meet Draco's kiss, allowing their lips to rove together passionately. Draco broke the kiss and reached down to grab his wand, which was on the floor. Harry barely had time to think before the blond was murmuring the lubrication spell that covered his member and then put it up to Harry's entrance. The cool gel filled his passage and Harry held in his gasp. The blond leaned back down over him, rubbing their warm chests together. Draco moved one of Harry's legs farther apart and then he captured Harry's lips in a heated kiss. Harry heard the sound of their kiss break as Draco kissed him over and over again. Harry was moving his lips in a passionate rhythm, only taking breaths when necessary.

Draco moved his hands away from Harry's thighs and grabbed both of Harry's hands, holding them up above his head. Harry's briefly opened his eyes. As Draco leaned down to kiss him he also pressed his arousal against his entrance. Harry's lips parted just as Draco's mouth covered his own. Harry's body tensed when he felt the intrusion push through. Draco moaned loudly as he gradually pushed forward. Harry's back arched and his hands jerked, but Draco held them in place. The blond gripped his wrists tightly as he fully entered, moaning as he broke their kiss. Draco made a sound of pleasure as he began to pull out and then push back in at a slightly faster pace. Harry groaned and tensed his legs as he got used to the intrusion again.

Draco thrust his hips forward, pushing his arousal all the way in. Instead of pulling back out again, Draco remained all the way in and began thrusting his pelvis in quick deep thrusts. Harry felt the pleasure erupt within him and he broke the kiss, gasping and moaning. Draco barely noticed as he began moaning loudly. His pace became faster and Harry's lips parted again as he gasped breathlessly. Draco then released the grip he had on Harry's hands and instead grabbed the back of his thighs. He pulled out and thrust back in deeper. Harry tilted his head backward and moaned. His hands came around Draco's body and he dug his fingers into his back. Draco pulled out again and thrust back in over and over again. Every time he did, Harry felt his legs tremble. His orgasm was approaching. Draco's moans became louder. The blond leaned his weight on top of him as he began thrusting in quicker motions, but not pulling out entirely. Harry felt his body tense and his head tilted back.

"Uhhhh! Uhhhhh!" Harry groaned, feeling his orgasm approaching.

"Uhhh! Harry! Move your legs up higher," Draco gasped breathlessly.

Harry barely registered what he was saying, but he wrapped his legs up higher, creating an even deeper angle. Harry cried out as Draco thrust in.

"Uhh! Yes!" Draco shouted out. His moans became louder and more prominent. Draco clenched Harry's thighs tightly.

Harry's whole body was shaking from the thrusts. He parted his lips and then cried out as his orgasm struck him hard. Draco thrust several more times, crying out with each thrust until his orgasm erupted. Harry felt it inside of him. The two of them lay on the couch, with perspiration covering their bodies, as they fought to catch their breath.

After several minutes, Draco finally rose up to clean them with a spell.

"That was a much better celebration," he said with a sexy smirk.

Harry was still out of breath but raised an eyebrow in response. He put an arm over his forehead, waiting for his heart rate to slow.

"I'm going to get a drink. You want one?"

"You don't mean Butterbeer, right? I don't think I can drink any more alcohol, no matter how small."

Draco snorted. "I meant a Nettle juice or something."

"Sure," Harry said, glancing at him.

The blond headed out of the room. Harry couldn't help but stare at his naked body as he did so. A minute later he came back in with two Nettle juices. Harry sat up on the couch and took the drink. Draco plopped down next to him and took a swig of his drink. Harry tried not to stare at him as he sipped his own drink.

Draco glanced at him with a sly look. Harry gazed back curiously. "What?"

Draco leaned forward toward him and pressed their lips together. "We could always go another round," he whispered heatedly.

Harry opened his mouth to respond but Draco kissed him again. The blond used his free hand to grab Harry's hair gently, tilting his head for a better angle. Suddenly, a sound erupted nearby. They both broke away to see a secure owl fluttering in the fireplace, trying to steer clear of the flames. Harry jumped up and made the flames disappear. He then lit up his wand to see as the secure owl came flying out and collapsed to the floor. Harry turned the fireplace back on for more light and picked it up.

Draco was still seated on the couch looking alarmed. "What's it say?"

Harry opened it. While the edges were burned the message was clear.

"Cyprian was taken to St. Mungo's," he said, gazing at him.

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Does it say why?"

"No. The Minister wanted to inform me, I guess because we're friends, but it doesn't say what's wrong. It just says they're trying to figure out why he's been feeling unwell."

"I'm sure they'll figure it out and once they do they'll give him some medicine and he'll be back to normal," Draco said. "Why do you look concerned?"

"I don't know, I just…I have a bad feeling about it. There's just something not right about the whole thing. I think it's because I noticed the same paleness and sick-like appearance on Slughorn when he was being overtaken by Voldemort."

"Yeah, but…Cyprian can't have a Horcrux in him, right?" Draco asked.

Harry shook his head. "No. There's no way Voldemort was strong enough to create a Horcrux and then place it in Cyprian. If he could do that, he wouldn't need me."

"Then I'm sure Cyprian's fine. Whatever it is they'll figure it out."

"Yeah," Harry said, biting his lip. He sighed heavily. "It's always something."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "This surprises you? I thought you'd be used to that by now."

Harry glared at him. "Hilarious."

Draco grinned. Harry sighed and rubbed his eyes. "That party really drained me. I think I'm going to go to bed."

"Seriously? It's like 8."

"I know, but I'm exhausted."

"That's not just because of the party," Draco retorted with a smile.

Harry gave him a look and then snorted. "Yeah, probably not."

He yawned and then summoned his clothes. As he trudged upstairs, Draco followed behind him. Harry turned around.

"Goodni—"

Draco cut him off by capturing his lips in a heated kiss. As they broke apart, Harry blinked in surprise and Draco just smirked at him.

"Night Potter," Draco drawled as he headed up to his room.

"It's Harry."

He heard Draco snicker as he disappeared from sight. Harry smiled to himself and then he walked in his room, turned on his fireplace, changed into his pajama pants and collapsed in bed. He really hoped Cyprian would be all right. Most of all he hoped that Davin Rigelsby would give them a clue as to where to start searching for the elusive plant-creature.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

TO REVIEWERS:

**bbbreeex**: Aww, I'm glad you liked it! Yes the romance will continue to grow more and more, no worries. =) You're so sweet! I'm so glad you continue to like every chapter. That makes me happy! Hopefully you enjoyed this one too. I will update asap!

**Abeham**: Thanks! I'm so glad you liked the chapter. I'm glad you enjoyed the break from the suspense and near-death situations, lol! There will be much more suspense to come I'm afraid. I actually do some research at the Harry Potter Lexicon website and I either take canon ideas and turn them into my own, or I completely make them up. I do keep some creatures from the canon, but most I try to make up. Almost all their assignments are made up but a couple are based on canon ideas. The creature in this last chapter, the Icoco Bush I completely made up. I thought it would be fun and I'm glad you liked it! Yep, Voldie is still alive. Don't be too concerned about Jace. He's not a main character. It just adds a little tension. =) I know you dread the fact that Draco's not free yet. I'm afraid that won't be solved for a little while. Finding the creature isn't going to be a piece of cake, but I promise I won't draw it out too long. I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Lol! Yes neither of them were very good at jokes! =) I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. I hope this one was good too! The suspense will begin to pick up soon so be ready! I will update asap!

**Joh**: Ohhhhh, I'm so sorry to hear you've been having a bad day. That's no good! I hope you're better now. (*hugs*) I'm glad that the chapter put a smile on your face. =) You're so sweet! I promise to work hard to continue updating every week. And I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well! I'll update asap!

**Carling**: Awww, thanks! I figured you all needed a break from all the near-death and suspense, lol! It won't last for long but I'm glad you enjoyed it. =) Oh yes, steaminess is necessary! Their romance is still growing and it will continue to throughout the rest of the chapters. I hope Harry taking Draco was a nice surprise. At first I wasn't going to have it happen so soon, but there will be other tests for their relationship. Haha, I couldn't resist a blond joke. Thanks, I think my exams went well. I will know in 6-8 weeks. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! =) I will update asap!

**FrontalAssaultDSFTCI**: Thanks for your review! Glad you're enjoying it so far!

**idreamofdrarry**: Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed the chapters and are all caught up now! I completely understand about time. You actually had good timing because the last couple of updates have taken me 3 weeks. I really want to update more regularly if I can. Awww, you've given me plenty of praise! =) Yeah, Hermione drugged Harry but she's just being overprotective and worried that Harry was being manipulated. Ironic, I know. I'm really glad the sex was worth it and hopefully continues to be! I wasn't originally going to have Harry top so soon but hopefully it was okay. I wanted it to be different from my other stories where Draco is usually on top. This one I feel like they can switch back and forth. I will update asap! Thanks!

**Fred (guest)**: Thank you for your review. I understand that it seems like Hermione is way too accepting, but if you read closer she said she "supports" Harry. She never said anything about forgiving Draco yet. This will be clearer when everything comes to the brink with Harry and his friends. Hermione is a very compassionate character and she loves her friends so when she realized that Harry wasn't under the influence of any spell or potion, she was torn. She wants to support him because she knows his feelings are real and she can see that Draco risked his life for him. While she hasn't come to terms with her own feelings about Draco yet, she's being a good friend. This is my interpretation of how her character would react in a situation like this. For future reference when reviewing, I would appreciate constructive criticism, which is when you say things that you think the author can work and also things that you liked. I'm sure out of 19 chapters the Hermione thing wasn't the only thing that struck you. I assume that since you've read this far you do like it. Besides, this is a love story between Draco and Harry. Hermione and Ron are just secondary characters like everyone else in the story. Thank you for taking time to review.

**Bindy Sue (guest)****:** I suppose we can agree to disagree here. While JK said they "weaseled" their way out of prison that does not imply that they weren't changing sides. In my opinion, when Narcissa lied to Voldie about Harry being dead because she was more concerned about Draco, that's when it seemed to me that they were more concerned with survival than sides. Books are always open to interpretation so everyone reading them is allowed their own opinions about what they think. And of course Draco was still "working" for the Death Eaters and telling them he was on their side. He didn't want to be killed. But technically when Harry saved his life in the Room of Requirement he could've turned on him, but he didn't.

Yes, Hermione is compassionate and she is a very strong witch. That's why she was being overprotective and making sure that Harry wasn't under a spell. But it is my opinion that in this situation where Hermione found out that Harry's feelings were real, she was torn. She agreed to be supportive of Harry. She never said anything about forgiving Draco, if you read carefully. But she told Harry she would support him, because he is her friend and she doesn't want to lose their friendship. While she hasn't come to terms with her own feelings about Draco yet, she's being a good friend. Again this is my interpretation of what would happen in this situation. Obviously this situation isn't canon because in canon Harry and Draco would never be together.

This is a love story between Draco and Harry. Ron and Hermione and the others are secondary characters. And I believe that Hermione would react this way when finding out that her friend has real feelings for her enemy. And Draco is trying to make up for what he's done. Obviously Ron is going to be less forgiving. If you don't like my interpretation, you don't have to continue reading.

In the future, I would appreciate constructive criticism which means saying things you think the author can improve on while also stating things that you liked. Clearly you like the story or you wouldn't have chosen to read this far along. I doubt that after 20 chapters the one thing about Hermione is all you have to say. I don't think it's fair for someone to only point out the one thing they don't like after 20 chapters. That doesn't help the author. So in the future if you're going to review, do it constructively. And if you don't like my interpretation, then you don't have to read it. Thank you for taking time to review.


	22. The Breaking Point

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 21: The Breaking Point**

When Draco and Harry arrived at the café Neville was already sitting at a table with his drink. He waved them over.

"Hey Harry, nice to see you again," he said, standing up to hug him.

Harry patted his back and smiled. "You too."

Neville turned toward Draco and nodded. "Nice to see you too, Draco."

The blond snorted. "Yeah, right."

Neville just shook his head and sat down. "Mr. Rigelsby should be here shortly."

Draco summoned a menu and picked a Fizzling Bogart to drink. It was a black drink that bubbled like a cauldron with a frothy coating on top.

Harry nudged him. "Let me try some."

Draco raised an eyebrow then shrugged. Harry took the drink and sipped it. Because of its black color he thought it would taste like licorice. Instead it was spicy with a bunch of flavors together. There was a hint of cinnamon as well.

"It's good," Harry said.

"Obviously," Draco drawled.

Harry glared at him. Neville just smiled.

"So how has the job been?"

"Really good," Harry said.

"Yeah, except for the few near-death experiences," Draco muttered.

"Most of that was due to Voldemort," Harry retorted.

"Yeah, I heard about that. He's captured now, right?" Neville asked, wide-eyed. "What's going to happen?"

"Well he's captured but he's not dead. They're not exactly sure how he's clinging on but it probably has to do with that pendant he has inside him. The Minister is trying to find a way to get it out, but that requires going into the cell. He's worried that that's what Voldemort wants, like he's got something up his sleeve."

"Wonder what gives them that idea," Draco drawled sarcastically.

Harry ignored the urge to punch him.

Neville sighed heavily. "Well I'm sure they'll figure something out. I mean, he can't live forever."

"Actually –"

Harry elbowed Draco in the side and the blond clutched his side.

"Ow! Bloody hell, Potter!"

Harry narrowed his eyes at him then turned back to Neville. "I'm sure you're right. They'll figure something out."

Neville looked back and forth between them and then took an awkward sip of his drink. Draco just crossed his arms and sunk down in his seat.

"So Neville –"

"There he is!" Neville gasped.

Harry and Draco both turned around. A somewhat short man with a black coat and large found glasses came into view. He had messy dark blond hair and brown eyes. Neville waved him over.

"It is such an honor to meet you, Mr. Rigelsby."

"Just call me Davin, Neville," he said, smiling warmly.

"I hope you don't mind, but a couple friends of mine wanted to talk with you about something."

Davin gazed over at them. "Oh, of course," he said. "I don't mind at all. Pleasure."

He shook Draco's hand. The blond just nodded wordlessly. His eyes were wide and seemingly in awe. Harry tried not to laugh at the look on Draco's face. It wasn't every day that he was stunned into silence.

Harry stood up. "It's nice to meet you, sir. This is my friend Draco and I'm Harry."

"Nice to meet you both," he said as he sat down next to Neville.

"You too," Harry said, nodding. He glanced over at Draco who was still staring at the man in awe.

"I already told Harry about the great opportunity I'd be having with you," Neville said, grinning.

"Ah yes, it's going to be a wondrous journey," Davin said, rubbing his hands together.

Harry cleared his throat. "If you don't mind, sir, we'd like to ask your expert opinion."

Davin blinked. "Oh why of course. Fly away!"

Harry blinked. Draco nudged him and leaned over. "It means go ahead, Potter."

Davin's eyes went wide and his glasses began to slip off his face. "Blimey! Harry Potter! Of course. By golly, I should've recognized you!"

Harry glared at Draco who just shrugged in response.

"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter," he said reaching over to shake his hand enthusiastically.

Harry felt his entire body shake from the force. "Er, yeah, you too."

"Well this certainly is a surprise," he said, gazing at him in awe.

It unnerved him that the man wasn't blinking.

"What could the famous Harry Potter want with little ol' me," he asked, chuckling.

"Harry works for Hellebore," Neville said.

Draco cleared his throat. Neville smiled sheepishly. "I mean they both do. They're partners there, doing field research."

"How incredible! That's right up my flight path."

Harry choked on his drink. He had a feeling it was the same thing as "right up my alley" but he tried to hide his amusement.

"We actually caught a Blue Snargaluff," Draco said proudly.

Harry gazed over at him in annoyance. He finally said something to his idol and it came out as bragging. Unbelievable.

"Did you?!" Davin gasped. "Most impressive! I haven't seen one of those in ages!"

Draco grinned broadly. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Well the reason we're here is because of the plant-creature," Harry said.

Davin blinked and adjusted his glasses. "Plant-creature?"

"The unnamed one," Draco said. "The one that got the witch a couple decades ago."

"Oh my! Yes, I remember that happening! Mind you I was a child during that time, but I remember it being one of the great unsolvable mysteries. In all my travels around the world I have yet to come across anything that could do that to a person."

Harry and Draco exchanged glances.

"What exactly did it do to her?" Harry asked.

"Well she completely vanished into thin air. No one knows what happened, only that her wand was left behind. There was screaming so it's possible that it ate her, but normally any plants that are carnivorous leave behind some ectoplasm or plant juices. There was nothing of the kind. The theory back then was that it completely vaporized her. I've never come across anything that could do that, if that's what did happen. To this day it's still a mystery."

It was the worst feeling imaginable, the disappointment that flooded inside him. Harry couldn't even imagine what Draco was feeling, being since Davin was his idol.

"So there's no clues whatsoever?" Neville asked curiously.

Davin sat back in his seat. "Well I suppose the only clue would be her wand. The Ministry back then tried all sorts of spells and charms to try to replay back what she had seen. Nothing worked. It was like…like nothing happened. She managed a recording spell just before the attack so she recorded the description of it. What she described was some sort of plant-creature with black teeth and glowing eyes that camouflaged itself into its surroundings."

"Sounds rather creepy," Neville said.

"Yes, but then again there are plants out there that use defensive techniques to scare predators away. Sometimes with hallucinogens. It's not clear if what she saw was the plant or some hallucination."

Harry glanced at Draco who was staring down at his drink. He felt his entire body seize up with tension. Draco was losing hope. Harry had to find a way to keep him fighting. They couldn't give up now.

"Sir, Draco and I are trying to study this creature and learn everything we can about it. It's kind of a hobby of ours."

He chuckled. "I completely understand. I was so obsessed with plants when I was younger that I would sometimes sneak outside and talk to them at night."

Harry's mouth fell open slightly but he quickly shut it. "Er, uh, we were just wondering, in your expert opinion, if you were to start somewhere to track such a creature down, where would you start?"

"Ah, yes, let's see," he said, tapping his fingers on the table. "I suppose if it were me, I'd probably want to go see the wand first. Even though the Ministry claims they've tried every spell to gather a clue, I'd still want to see the wand for myself."

Harry nodded. "Okay. Do you know where the wand is?"

Davin swallowed his sip and then slowly put his glass down. "Oh, well, that's a bit problematic."

"How come?" Draco spoke up.

"No one knows exactly where she was when attacked because her wand was found in the North Sea. She could've been in Scotland or anywhere in the United Kingdom. It's a large area to search. Some people think also depending on which direction the currents were moving that she could've been somewhere in Ireland too. The wand is being held at the Ministry of Magic in Ireland. I believe the only reason they have it is because the witch who disappeared was from Ireland. In order to see the wand you have to get approval by the Minister of Magic there, which is a process."

Harry felt his heart sink. "How long of a process?"

Davin shook his head. "I'm not sure. I never tried to go see it. Despite my grandfather telling me the story, I never tried to pursue the mysterious creature. There just wasn't anything to go on so I always just thought it was a myth."

They fell into silence. Neville glanced at Harry who smiled at him sadly. While it wasn't a lot, at least they knew one place to start.

"You boys want to tag along with us on our journey?" Davin asked, smiling.

"Oh, thank you, sir, but we have assignments here that we need to finish," Harry said.

Draco nodded reluctantly. Harry could sense his disappointment.

"Well it was nice meeting you both," he said, shaking their hands.

"You too," Draco said, nodding toward him.

Harry turned to Neville. "I hope you have a great journey. You'll have to owl me when you get back."

"I will, Harry," Neville said, reaching over to give him a hug. "Take care," he whispered.

Harry nodded. "I will."

Draco turned around to leave and Harry followed. Once they were outside, Harry approached his side.

"Well at least we have something to check out."

"Yeah," Draco snorted. "I doubt we're going to find anything that the Ministry didn't."

Harry sighed. "We have to try. Maybe using the dragon's flame –"

"No," Draco said, halting suddenly. "We can't use any more flame. We need enough for the potion."

"Okay," Harry said. "Geez, you don't have to have a meltdown," he muttered.

"I'm not having a meltdown, Potter!" Draco snapped.

Harry gave him an annoyed look. "Really. That's convincing."

Draco wheeled around. "You think this is funny, Potter?! If that plant doesn't exist, that potion may not be strong enough to break the vow!"

"Yeah, and even if it does exist it may not break the vow!" Harry retorted hotly.

Draco's eyes widened and he clenched his fist. Then he wheeled back around.

"Draco, wait! I'm sorry, I didn't mean – Would you just stop!" Harry exclaimed, jumping in front of him.

The blond still had his fists clenched but he stopped and glared at him.

"Look. What I'm saying is that even this potion may not break the vow for sure, but it's the only shot we've got. So we have to believe that this plant-creature, or something like it, is out there. Who knows, even if this plant-creature doesn't exist, there are tons of amazing plants we've come across. Maybe the Blue Snargaluff could help."

Draco snorted. "I highly doubt that."

"Maybe not, but there's got to be a plant or something out there that can help, if this plant-creature doesn't exist. We'll think of something. The great thing about our job is that we have the chance to explore the world with Hellebore's research and knowledge so we have opportunities to discover and find rare plants. At least we have the dragon's flame. That alone might be enough for the potion. So just don't worry so much."

"The dragon's flame strengthens the potion, Potter, but we need something more than just strengthening."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

Draco sighed heavily and ran his hands through his hair. "The vow is a powerful spell because it does more than just bind someone's life to uphold the promise. It's bound by blood. So when my parents made the vow they used my blood and Daphne's blood."

"You mean…they didn't do the vow themselves?"

"Of course not. Like they'd put their own lives on the line! When we were kids they made us stand there being bound together with our lives, our blood. We had no idea what it meant at the time."

Harry shook his head in disgust. "That's horrible. What does Daphne think about the vow?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen her in a few years and I never asked. My mother didn't remind me about it until my last year at Hogwarts."

Harry clenched his fists. "We're going to break it, Draco. We still have a year. I'm going to ask Kingsley if he can help get us in to see that wand faster."

Sighing heavily, Draco nodded. "Fine. I'm going to pick up some food and butterbeer." He hesitated. "Do you want anything?"

"Whatever you get is fine. I don't need anything specific," Harry said.

The blond gazed at him for a minute before taking off. Harry sighed and flew off toward the Ministry building. As he landed, the Aurors out front guarding it recognized him and greeted him. The doors opened and Harry stepped inside. He couldn't get to the Minister's office, usually, without an appointment, but perhaps they would make an exception. He walked over to the front desk.

"Excuse me. I'm Harry Potter and –"

"Oh welcome, Mr. Potter!" the witch cooed.

"Yes, er, I need to speak with the Minister."

"Oh, I'm afraid he's in a meeting right now."

"When will he be done?"

"Maybe another hour or so," she said. "You can come back later and I can see if he'll see you."

Harry nodded. Since Draco was out shopping anyway, Harry decided to fly to St. Mungo's to visit Cyprian. The building had expanded in the past year with funds given by Kingsley. Many people had been injured from the war. It was a twenty-story building with floors for every kind of illness imaginable. Harry walked inside and was greeted by witches and wizards in white uniforms with the St. Mungo's logo, which was two staffs crossed together over an Abrazia, a large black winged horse with a flaming blue mane and tail that billowed just like fire. Its eyes also glowed blue apparently when it was enraged.

"Would you like a drink, sir?" one of the wizards asked, approaching him with a tray.

"Er, no thanks," Harry said.

The wizard smiled at him and nodded. Harry approached the front desk.

"Excuse me, I'm here to see a friend."

"What's the name?" the witch asked.

"His name's Cyprian Hengist."

The witch's eyes widened. "Oh yes, hold on a minute."

She waved her wand at the large book in front of her.

"He is on the top floor."

"Thanks," Harry said.

The witch nodded toward him. Harry walked to the wall nearby that was blinking with all the floor numbers. He pressed the number 20 and the wall slid aside. Harry stepped inside and came out of another wall seconds later. He was on the twentieth floor. The sign above him glimmered: _**Floor 20: Specialty Cases**_. He stared up at it wondering what that meant. He went to the desk there on the twentieth floor.

"Hi, I'm here to see Cyprian Hengist."

"Sure. One minute," the witch said, adjusting her glasses. "He's in Room 13. Just go down the hall here, turn left and it will be the third door on your right."

"Thanks," Harry said.

He followed her directions to Room 13. He stared at the closed door for a second before opening it. As he walked inside he saw a couple of people hovering over the bed so he couldn't see Cyprian. There was a tall wizard, a nurse witch and another witch who was dressed in a school uniform. She had her bushy brown hair tied up in a bun. The second the door closed behind him, all eyes turned.

"Harry?" Hermione asked, surprised.

He blinked. "Hermione. What are you doing here?"

The wizard doctor turned toward him. "We're performing some tests right now. If you could please wait outside."

Harry nodded. He walked outside and sat down in one of the chairs. Moments later Hermione emerged.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hi," Harry said awkwardly. "How have you been?"

"Pretty busy. I think Ron's frustrated because with my internship here as well as my studies we haven't had much time to visit one another."

"That's really great that you're still interning here. Does that mean you'll get to work here after?"

"Maybe," she said, smiling. Then her smile faded. "I'm sorry about your friend, Cyprian."

"Is he okay?"

Hermione sighed and shook her head. "His case is baffling. Even my mentor is stumped. That's why he's up here on the top floor. This floor is full of rare cases or ones that are undiagnosed. Once a diagnosis is made, they're moved to the appropriate floor. He's already been here two days and we're not able to figure out what's wrong."

Harry bit his lip. "I don't want to sound paranoid or to make anyone panic, but if you're working on Cyprian's case, or you know the doctor who is, you might want to mention them looking for any signs of dark magic."

"We have been looking at that. What do you mean exactly?"

"I mean I'm worried that Voldemort did something to him," he said quietly.

Hermione's eyes widened. "What do you think he did?"

"I don't know. I mean there's no way Cyprian could be a Horcrux, but he's pale and sickly now just like Slughorn was when Voldemort began taking over his body."

"True but there isn't any test that we know of to test for a Horcrux," Hermione said. "Besides, the only reason Voldemort got to Slughorn was because he had a back-up plan and was fighting with Slughorn in battle so he was able to plant the Horcrux then."

"I know, but remember me, Draco and Cyprian were taken hostage by Slughorn when he was possessed by Voldemort. There's no telling what he did while we were unconscious."

Hermione's lips parted in shock and she nodded. "Okay. I'll let them know. They may have to speak with the Minister so the whole Horcrux thing can be explained. Maybe we can finally figure out how to test for one."

"Thanks," Harry said. He hesitated. "So I was just wondering, are you okay with everything? You know, about Draco."

Hermione glanced at him and folded her hands in her lap. "Honestly I don't know what to feel. You're my friend, Harry, and I don't want to lose our friendship, but I just...," she sighed. "It's still too early for me to completely forgive everything Draco did. I mean, for all of our years of Hogwarts he's been horrible and I know that he's trying to make amends. I know that he saved your life too, and I'm grateful for that. It's not that I don't think that Draco's feelings for you are necessarily real, but you just have to keep in mind the kind of person he is."

"I know what kind of person he is, or was. I spent time investigating him and watching him closely. He's the one who hit on me first."

"Yes, but what are his motives? Do you really think he cares about you? Or is he just trying to get close to you so you can protect him, or so he can mooch off of you?"

"I don't think that's it. He has a good job. He can afford his own place," Harry said.

Hermione sighed. "Harry, I want to believe that this is real. I want to believe that someone can change that much. I'm just worried that he's going to break your heart or something."

"He's not going to do that. If I ever found out he wasn't sincere I'd kick his ass, not cry over him," Harry said, smiling.

A slight smile appeared on her face. "Yeah. Just keep your eyes open."

"I will. I promise. It might help if you knew the situation."

She glanced up at him. "What situation?"

"There's more to the story than I was able to tell you before, you know, since Ron was there. Before I even partnered with Draco, he had basically told his mother he didn't want any part of what they were doing anymore. He kind of got disowned and so he had to find a job."

"Really? He gave up his inheritance?" she asked with raised eyebrows. "That doesn't seem like him."

"I know. I'm not saying that he's a great person. He's done some horrible things. I mean he's Slytherin and his whole family has been into Dark Arts for centuries. It's not easy to break away from that, but he's trying. Anyway, long story short when we finally partnered up and weird stuff began happening, I started getting suspicious of him. I sort of took an illegal potion."

"What?! Harry, what potion?"

"The Astrindgo potion," Harry said, looking away sheepishly.

"That's incredibly risky! If you don't get it just right –"

"I know, I know. It worked out fine. In fact, it ended up saving me from Voldemort."

Hermione calmed down. "What do you mean?"

Harry began explaining what the potion did, about Draco's memories he witnessed, and about them using the potion together to protect their lives.

"Wow. That's surprising," Hermione said quietly. "So he really was disowned."

"Yeah. And there are some things I can't really explain right now, but I promise you Draco is not like his parents. I know he's still got a lot to make up for, but he's really a good person deep down inside."

"I'm sure he's got good qualities, Harry, but even without his parents he could still have his own motivations for wanting to be with you. I mean you're famous and wealthy and he could be bragging to all his friends about being with you."

Harry shrugged. "Maybe. But honestly I think his feelings for me are real. When he found out I was investigating him, he thought I was using him. You know, pretending to like him so that I could get close and find out his deep, dark secrets. The way he acted…I don't know. It seemed like he was really hurt. And you know I'm good at reading people with my Legilmency."

"Yes, but Draco mastered Occulmency."

Harry sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'm not saying it's completely impossible that his feelings aren't real, or that maybe it's just an infatuation or something. I really think he wants to break away from his family though. He's taking a lot of risks to do it and I don't think he would jeopardize his inheritance or relationship with his family if he didn't really want to break away."

Hermione smiled sadly. "Well I hope you're right. I meant what I said, that I wouldn't tell Ron, but I don't want to keep this from him forever. We are all best friends. I do think he needs to hear it from you so I won't say anything. But eventually you need to tell him."

Harry nodded. "I know. I have to think of a way to explain it."

"No matter how you explain it you know he's not going to take it well. Just be prepared. I promise you that I'll be here for you, but I can't promise how Ron will react."

"I know," he said. "Thanks for being there Hermione, even though I know you don't really like the idea of us together."

She smiled. "Of course, Harry. I have to get back to work. I'll let you know if we figure anything out about Cyprian."

"Thanks," he said, giving her a hug.

She waved goodbye and disappeared back in the room. A moment later the doctor and nurse walked out along with Hermione. She smiled back at him before disappearing down the hall. Harry entered the room and saw Cyprian lying in the bed. He was sleeping soundly, but he was very pale. Thankfully his skin didn't look sickly like Slughorn's. Maybe that was a good sign.

"Hey Cyprian. I'm really sorry about how things turned out. If I hadn't lied about you to Slughorn, you never would've gotten kidnapped. I hope you get better soon."

Harry left St. Mungo's and flew back to the Ministry. Thankfully Kingsley was out of the meeting so Harry could see him. The elevator took him straight up to the Minister's office. When he entered, Kingsley greeted him with a warm handshake.

"Harry, how are you holding up?"

"Not bad. How are you?"

Kingsley chuckled. "Busy, but never better. So what brings you here?"

"Well, first before that I just wanted you to know that I visited Cyprian. I'm worried that Slughorn might have done something to him while we were kidnapped so I told Hermione about it. She's working with the doctors there. They may need you to explain the Horcrux process to them so they can check Cyprian for that."

"You think he's a Horcrux?"

"I don't know. It doesn't make sense that he would be, but I just think it can't be a coincidence that he started feeling sick after he was kidnapped. Maybe I'm just being paranoid."

"It's all right, Harry, we'll check it out. I'm sure Cyprian will be fine," he said, smiling. "Have a seat."

Harry sat down in the plush seat. Kingsley made them both some tea and a cup floated over to him.

"Now what's on your mind?"

"Well me and Draco are in search of the mysterious plant-creature that apparently vaporized a witch decades ago. We heard that the wand was being kept by the Minister of Magic in Ireland and I was hoping you'd be able to help me get in to take a look at the wand."

"Ah, I see," Kingsley said, setting down his cup. "Why the sudden curiosity about this plant-creature?"

Harry bit his lip. He really hated lying to the Minister, or keeping secrets from him, but he couldn't risk Draco getting arrested or in trouble before they broke the vow.

"We just had some free time in between assignments and we've been kind of on a roll in finding rare plants so we thought we'd tackle this mystery."

Kingsley chuckled. "Always searching for a challenge I see. Well I can certainly owl the Minister of Magic there and give you a recommendation. Their rules are their own so I don't know that it would guarantee you a meeting, but I hope it will help."

"Thanks, Kingsley."

"Of course. How has Draco been doing?"

"Pretty good."

"You two are still living at Grimmauld Place?"

Harry flushed. "Er, yeah. I think until Voldemort is really dead neither of us want to leave the safety of that place."

"Understandable. Unfortunately, we still have no idea how to remove that amulet without going into the cell. I am uncertain what type of amulet it is so any of us walking into there could be what Voldemort wants. He may be able to escape that way. I don't want to risk anyone's lives, but I'm not sure what else to do at this point."

"Has he said anything?" Harry asked darkly.

"No. He just sneers at us when we walk in there. Since he's encased in an impenetrable cell, there's no way to do spells from the outside. We just keep hoping his body disintegrates but it hasn't gotten any worse since he was captured."

Harry sighed heavily. "That's what I was afraid of."

"At this point the only possibility of truly killing him may be to try going into the cell. I'm going to hold off a little longer though. Hopefully we'll have a breakthrough."

"Yeah. I hope so."

"Don't worry about it, Harry. Just enjoy your life. Voldemort is my problem now. I'll keep you informed if anything changes."

"Thanks," Harry said, smiling as he stood up. "I'm so glad you became Minister."

He chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. "Well I'm glad I got to meet you. Your fight was part of my inspiration for wanting to become Minister, as well as Dumbledore and the Order. Now go home and take it easy and try not to worry about anything."

"I'll try," Harry said, waving.

He went home to find Draco lounging on the couch. The blond was clad only in his black sweatpants. His chest was bare and he was drinking a fizzling Nettle juice.

"How did it go?" he asked.

"Good. Kingsley is going to owl the Minister of Magic in Ireland and see what he can do to get us in."

Draco made a sound in the back of his throat as he took a sip of his drink.

"Be right back," Harry said. He went into the kitchen to grab himself a drink. When he came back in the room, he kicked off his shoes and lay on the other couch. He took a sip of his drink then turned to glance at Draco who was staring up at the ceiling. "I saw Hermione."

Draco turned to gaze at him. "Where?"

"I went to visit Cyprian at St. Mungo's. Hermione is still shadowing the doctor there so she's actually been helping to oversee Cyprian's case. They still don't know what's wrong with him, but she told me she'd let me know."

He nodded. "Did she say anything else?"

"About you, you mean?" Harry asked. Draco shrugged in response. "She said she still supports me, but she wants me to tell Ron soon."

"Oh great," Draco drawled. "That's a disaster waiting to happen."

"Yeah," Harry said, sighing. "Anyway, what do you want to do for your birthday? It's coming up in a couple weeks."

"Not sure," Draco said, raising a hand above his head.

"We could invite people from work to go out somewhere."

Draco made a face of interest. Then his eyes lit up. "Actually, there is this restaurant I've always wanted to go to. They get booked really fast, but they're one of the top restaurants. It's the Hebridian Palace. It's in Skydale, which is on the other side from Hogsmeade. It's a smaller shopping area but they've got some great places there."

"Okay," Harry said, smiling. "What do you want for your birthday?"

The blond raised an eyebrow. "You're going to get me a gift, Potter?"

Harry glared at him. Draco just smirked in response.

"Well I was thinking about it, but if you keep calling me Potter I may have to reconsider."

"It's a habit," Draco said.

"Fine, _Malfoy_."

The blond snorted in amusement. He took another swig of his drink like it didn't bother him. Harry stared at him in annoyance. He finally sighed and turned away, concentrating on his drink.

"Any word about You-Know-Who?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Stop calling him that. And no. They're still not sure how to get the amulet out of him, but Kingsley said they may have to try going into the cell."

"Yep. We're doomed."

"That's not funny," Harry retorted.

"I wasn't trying to be funny," Draco drawled. "If they go into the cell he'll probably steal one of their bodies and walk out with a fresh new skin."

Harry wrinkled his nose. "Thanks for that image. Kingsley will do all he can to prevent that from happening. Voldemort is weak enough so they may be able to overpower him and force the amulet out."

"And if they can't?"

"They'll think of something. There has to be a way."

Draco sighed heavily and took another sip. "Let's hope so."

The two of them relaxed on the couch for a little while. Draco brought up random topics such as Quidditch and they argued about what team would win the Championships. Then they both had an early dinner together. Harry pretended to be tired and went up to his room early on.

He immediately began working on invitations for Draco's party. He had never needed to use the spell before so he played around with it until he had invitations that he liked. They were rectangular and completely black. It sat on top of a silver, slightly larger rectangle which provided a sort of border to the black cards. The writing was also in silver and Harry put a gold dragon symbol at the top of the invitation. Once he had all the invitations completed the first phase was done. The second phase would begin in the morning. He would fly to the restaurant to make sure they could save room for Draco's birthday. Hopefully using his fame would help since apparently the place booked up fast.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_*A couple weeks later*_

"So what restaurant did you get?" Draco asked as he relaxed in the back of the flying car.

Harry was driving and made him sit in the back seat.

"I think you'll like it," Harry said, smiling.

"I'm surprised you couldn't get into the Hebridian Palace with your fame."

"Not everyone would break rules for me, you know. And in my defense I rarely use my fame."

Draco smirked. "Rarely? So when have you used it?"

Harry smiled. "We're here."

He parked the flying car in the air a foot off the ground and jumped down. Draco followed him and the blond's eyes caught sight of the large palace-shaped building in front of them. It was decked out in fancy lights and floating candles. Above in gleaming letters read: _**Hebridian Palace**_. Harry grinned when he realized that Draco was truly surprised.

"Wow, Potter, you really had me going."

Harry gave him a look. "Don't start that again."

Draco smirked. "Sorry, _Harry_. It's a habit."

"Well break it."

The second they entered they were greeted by a waiter that led them to their table. They were in a private room with a large booth that went in a circle. There was a statue of a Hebridian Black dragon behind it. All around them also were fake plants charmed to sprout flowers and floating silver candles throughout the room that were shaped as dragons and glowed from the inside out. The table seated nine including them. The beautiful black and silver invitations with the gold dragon symbol at the top were at each seat except for theirs. Draco peered over at them to read them. In silver writing it had the words: _**Draco's Birthday Bash. **_And then below it in silver was the person's name. Harry had invited: Maisie, Malik, Ronan, Tess and Asher, the group they met at Dimitri's celebration, as well as Liaeda, a friend they had both worked with there before they had gone on their vacation, and even Jace. Harry thought inviting Jace was considerate to Draco since they were still on good terms. Plus it showed Draco that he didn't mind it because he trusted him. Draco's seat had his own specialized seating card that had his name on it.

The blond glanced up at him. "You did all of this?"

"Of course," Harry said, smiling.

The blond smiled back. "So are we early?"

"SURPRISE!"

Draco jumped as all of them appeared from behind the large statue, several of the plants, and also from under the table. Draco caught sight of Jace and glanced at Harry who just smiled in return.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY DRACO!" Tess squealed, pouncing on him.

"Oof! Uh, thanks Tessa."

"It's Tess."

"Right," Draco said. He grinned as she released him.

"This place is amazing," Asher said.

"I've heard about this place but I've never been here before," Jace said. He came over and patted Harry on the shoulder. "You did a nice job."

"Thanks," he said, smiling.

"I'm starving!" Asher exclaimed. "I bet this place has amazing dishes!"

"I can't believe it's all being paid. This is the best birthday ever!" Malik exclaimed.

"Malik! Stop being rude," Maisie exclaimed, punching him in the arm.

Draco gazed over at Harry. "You're paying for everyone?"

"Of course. I don't want people to worry about how much it costs so they can just enjoy themselves."

The blond's eyes softened. "Thanks, Harry."

He smiled in return. "You're welcome, Draco. Now go sit and relax."

Grinning, Draco sat down in his designated seat. As they all sat down, water came floating over to them as well as menus.

"Oh my gosh they have grilled Dugbog!" Maisie shrieked. "I'm so excited! That's like a delicacy!"

"We can all get a plate since Harry's paying," Draco said, smirking.

Harry raised his eyebrows at him but didn't comment.

"Draco! Harry's doing this for you. You can't take advantage of him and make him go broke," Tess said.

"Oh trust me, he won't go broke," Draco drawled.

All eyes turned to him and Harry sank down in his seat.

"Are you that wealthy?" Malik asked.

Maisie glared at Malik and shoved him in his arm. "That's not appropriate to ask."

"Why are you sitting next to me?" he asked.

"So I can torture you, of course."

Draco snickered. "I'd like to see that."

"Don't tempt her, Draco. She's more malicious than she looks," Malik said.

They all began talking about various topics. Jace surprisingly chose the seat next to Harry. Harry was sitting across from Draco, who was sitting in between Asher and Liaeda.

"I hope you like your gift," Liaeda said.

"Don't worry, I'm not picky," Draco said, smiling. "And really you guys didn't have to get me anything."

"Oh nonsense," Tess said. "It's your birthday."

"I'm totally getting a Firebreathing Butterbeer," Ronan said.

"No, you're not," Malik said. "You're too young."

"I'm 16!"

"Exactly," Malik said. "And I'm 18. You can have a sip of mine."

Ronan glared at his older brother and muttered something under his breath. Harry just smiled in amusement. Draco began talking with Liaeda about work and then he and Asher began talking about Quidditch. Since they were all curious about Draco's age, now that he was 19, Harry found out everyone's age. Jace was 21, Liaeda was 17, Maisie was 16, Tess was 19, and Asher was 23. When Tess found out she and Draco were the same age she jumped up and down in her seat. Draco was thoroughly amused. He seemed to be having a good time, which Harry was grateful for.

Shortly after they all ordered their drinks and dinners. Draco had gotten their specialty, grilled dragon meat in sauce with fried Pixie chips on the side. From what he had learned about the place, they preserved meat from dying creatures, particularly dragons. Once a dragon died, they preserved the meat right away, using magic so it could last however long they needed it. Since dragons didn't die too often it was a specialty and very expensive but also apparently one of their best meals.

"That is so cool that your name means dragon," Liaeda said. "I never knew that!"

Draco shrugged and smiled. "Yeah. That's why I wanted to be a dragon trainer when I was a kid."

"Aww, I can just picture that," Tess piped up.

"So Liaeda, have you done any more tests with the Blue Snargaluff?" Draco asked. "Anything new we should know about?"

"We figured out why its buds open up under the full moon at midnight. Apparently the buds are like normal plants that require photosynthesis but since the sun is too hot for it, it gets energy from the rays of the moon. Midnight is the time in between morning and dusk so the plant is safest at that time since it's sensitive to light and temperature."

"Whoa," Maisie said.

"What about the plant juices that the whacko was drinking?" Draco asked as everyone around the table snickered. They all knew the story since Draco had told it to them at the celebration.

"Well it's not conclusive yet but it does seem to have some abnormal effects, including hallucinations. It has lots of nutrients to help the skin but so far we haven't found any evidence that it sustains life or extends it."

"Just what I thought," Draco said. "He was a lunatic."

"People will do just about anything to avoid death," Malik said. "I mean just look at You-Know-Who. Right, Harry?"

"Er, yeah," he said awkwardly.

"I want to hear the Inferi story again!" Tess exclaimed. "That was wicked funny how you described it, Draco, with all the faces you made."

"Yeah well you'd make those faces too if an Inferi was trying to eat you."

Harry smiled. Just then a waiter came over to him.

"Mr. Potter, someone is here to see you."

"Oh," Harry said, standing up.

He started walking toward the door to the private room. As he did so Ron walked in. Harry's heart stopped in his chest for a split second. His eyes widened when he saw his friend. Ron gazed at him in surprise and then his eyes caught sight of Draco. Harry turned around and saw Draco glanced up at them. The blond's smile faded as he caught sight of Ron standing there looking dumbfounded. Harry didn't want there to be a scene in front of the others so he quickly walked over to where Ron was.

"Ron," Harry said, "what are you doing here?"

"I heard you were here because some people were bragging about it," Ron said. "I couldn't believe it. I thought maybe me, Hermione, Ginny and her boyfriend Triton could join you but I guess we're interrupting something," he said angrily.

"Ron, come on, not this again," Harry said. "You know Draco and I are partners."

"Yeah partners! This doesn't look like a work thing, Harry!" he snapped. "Why the hell are you always hanging out with ferret-face?! He's betrayed us numerous times and done unspeakable things!"

"I know about his past, Ron," Harry said angrily. "He's trying to make amends. Everyone deserves a second chance."

Ron's mouth dropped open. "A second chance?!"

Harry realized Ron's voice was rising so he quickly ushered him out of the room.

"Ron, please! It's Draco's birthday party."

"Are you even listening to yourself?! You're celebrating our enemy's birthday! Have you gone insane?! I mean, it was one thing to invite him for dinner at my place, but this?!"

"I know you don't believe me that Draco has changed –"

"It's MALFOY! And no I don't believe you! You can't just pretend all those years at Hogwarts, or the war never happened!"

"I'm not! But I'm not going to hold a grudge forever either! He saved my life, remember?! Having him as an ally right now has been really helpful against Voldemort!"

Ron winced. "Yeah, well do you also remember that he is partly responsible for Remus and Tonk's deaths? I mean, he let the Battle of Hogwarts happen! He's the main reason Death Eaters got in and wrecked havoc!"

"Yeah, I get that! But how long is he going to have to pay for that when he's trying to make up for it?"

"Forever, Harry! At least for the rest of our lives!" Ron exclaimed, turning around.

"Ron just please stay calm, for once."

Ron wheeled back around. "Stay calm?! Stay calm when that – _thing_, that person that's ruined our entire lives, made everything a living hell, enjoyed tormenting us and helped start the war that killed my brother and almost tore my family apart," Ron hissed, taking in a deep breath. "You're with that thing that you want me to STAY CALM?!" he bellowed.

Harry winced hoping that Draco and the others couldn't hear. He knew it wasn't going to be pretty.

Harry inhaled shakily, trying not to get emotional. "Look, I know he was a horrible person, but he's not that person anymore, I swear. And he will do whatever it takes to make it up to all of us."

"I DON'T BLOODY CARE! I don't want him to do anything except leave us all the bloody hell alone!"

"Ron, it wasn't my decision initially to be with him –"

"That's no excuse –"

"Let me finish!" Harry snapped.

Ron clamped his mouth shut as his face turned red. Both fists were clenched and Harry knew he would explode any minute.

"Being forced to work with him helped me see a lot. He did a lot of what he did for survival. We could never understand because our families didn't raise us like his did. And while that doesn't give him an excuse, he's broken away from his family. He finally stood up to them and broke away from them and now he's making amends. He's not like them. And he doesn't want that life anymore. He told me that ever since being brainwashed into thinking that was what he wanted, he realized that he had only convinced himself that he wanted to be a Death Eater. Truthfully, he never wanted that kind of life. You know how he is. He loves attention, fame, glory. He wanted to go into Quidditch or something, you know, something flashy with his name in the headlines. He didn't want to be infamous and be a part of some cult and worry about being tortured and killed every day."

"His family is evil! They don't care about that! They enjoy torturing people!"

"Look there's something I never told you!"

Ron's eyes widened. "_More_ secrets?!"

"It's not a secret, just something I forgot to tell you both. When Voldemort shot me with the killing curse, he had someone go over to make sure I was dead. Narcissa volunteered because in reality she wasn't doing it for Voldemort. She came over and felt that I was alive. She didn't tell Voldemort that. She lied to him. All she cared about knowing if Draco was okay and I told her he was. In my opinion, Ron, that was a sign that while his family, his mother, has a lot of pride and does love dark magic, even she couldn't stomach what Voldemort was about. All she cared about was the survival of her family, just like you, only they took a different path. They thought siding with the enemy would mean a better survival chance than fighting," Harry said, breathing in deeply.

Ron was staring at him darkly. His body was shaking and Harry knew he had limited time to get the rest out.

"I'm not saying that his father's not evil. I'm not even saying that they don't have evil in them and that they've done evil things, but Draco out of all of his family members is the least evil. Even Sirius came from a family of Slytherins, from a dark family, but he didn't turn out like them! It is possible for people to defy their families and Draco did what Sirius did, only he waited longer to do it. I'm not saying forgive him. I'm saying give him a chance. A chance to prove that he is better, that he isn't like his family and that he can be a good person. That's all I'm asking."

"Are you done?" Ron spat.

Harry clenched his fists and then nodded curtly.

"You can't possibly compare him to Sirius. Sirius never tormented people! He didn't spend years being a horrible person and then decide one day he wanted to be good! Sirius decided right away that he didn't want to be like his family and he was always good. That's why his family hated him!"

"I know that! I'm not saying they're alike, Ron, I'm just saying that Draco is trying hard to be a good person!"

"That doesn't make up for the past! And it never will!" Ron spat. "I don't care if there is good deep inside of him. You're foolish to trust him in any way! You of all people should know better!"

"You know things aren't always what they seem, Ron! Snape is a perfect example of that!"

"Don't give me that crap!" he snapped.

"You're not even hearing my arguments!"

"Yes, I bloody am! I get that maybe he's broken away from his family, if that's even true, if he's not lying to you about that! And maybe he is trying to make amends, probably for himself so he can stay out of Azkaban so he doesn't have to join his father! Either way, he's still despicable and you having anything to do with him at all is beyond stupid! Of all the rash decisions you've ever made, this is the worst!"

"I know what I'm doing! Don't you think I've done my own investigation of him? All I found was more evidence that he's trying to break away from his family!"

"So now he's not even just a co-worker he's a real friend, is that it?! Have you even noticed that ever since you started hanging out with him you've become more secretive?! He's already influencing you! You're not even the same person, Harry! I mean, being gay, if that's what you are, fine. Eventually I could get used to that. Seamus is gay. And I get that you did love Ginny. Yes, people change, and their feelings change, but ever since you've started hanging out with Draco you've haven't kept in touch as often and now you all of a sudden start liking guys after working and living with him, which is just…"

Ron stopped abruptly. His entire face paled, all the red anger suddenly being replaced. Ron swallowed thickly and pointed a shaky finger at him.

"No…no, don't tell me that he…," Ron's breath hitched in his throat as he stared at Harry. "The most horrible thought has come to mind that I can't even say out loud," he whispered hoarsely.

Harry realized Ron had started figuring it out. He swallowed thickly: "Ron, just please hear me out."

"You're going to answer me truthfully now. _Who_ are you dating?"

Harry stared at him with wide eyes. He swallowed again as Ron's eyes glared into him.

"I think…you know who."

Ron covered his mouth while clenching his other fist. He turned away with disgust written on his face.

"Merlin this isn't happening," Ron whispered.

"Please, I'm begging you to just trust me."

"Merlin, I'm going to be sick! That's just – UGH! You can't possibly like him more than – I mean you haven't – Merlin, tell me you haven't…" Ron trailed off. His lip was trembling and he was looking torn between pulling his hair out and vomiting.

Harry opened his mouth but Ron suddenly grabbed at his own hair, pulling it angrily. "NO! I don't want to know! I don't know you anymore!"

"Ron!"

Angrily, Ron turned and ran through the restaurant. Harry ran after him and caught sight of Hermione, Ginny and Triton, who all looked surprised as Ron burst through the entrance doors. Hermione gazed at Harry sorrowfully and then ran after Ron. Ginny glanced at him in concern but Harry just waved to her and Triton. He didn't want to talk about it. He wanted to forget that it had even happened. Harry walked back to the private room and took a deep breath. He stood there for a minute trying to compose himself. He didn't want to break down although he was quite sure he just lost one of his best friends.

Slowly he walked back inside and toward the table.

"Hey Harry, what was that all about? We heard yelling," Tess said.

"Oh that was my friend, Ron. He was just upset that he wasn't invited," Harry said quickly.

"Oh," Tess said.

"Why wasn't he invited?" Malik asked curiously.

"Because I don't like him," Draco said.

Harry caught his eye and quickly looked away. Obviously Draco wanted to know what had happened, but he wasn't in the mood to talk about it.

"Well that's just mean," Tess said.

"He didn't sound very nice if he was yelling at Harry," Liaeda said.

"He's just hot-headed," Harry said, defending his friend. "Everything's fine. Don't worry."

"Good!" Maisie exclaimed.

"Then I think we should continue trying to get Draco drunk," Malik said. "Hey! Ronan stop stealing my drink! You've had enough sips!"

Harry breathed out heavily and concentrated on eating. The dinner went on for a little while longer and then afterward dessert and presents. Harry had gotten Draco a Memory Savor in the shape of a jeweled dragon. It would hold onto good memories and replay them with a single touch. Also it was said that if one touched it before bed it would act as a dreamcatcher and help promote good dreams. Draco seemed to like, especially because it was charmed to also help a person think out solutions to any memories or problems that were bothering them. He also got him a really good broom kit with anti-hexes and anti-breaking polish. It reminded him of when they first saw each other after school just before working together and they had crashed together and broken their brooms. Hopefully with the kit his broom wouldn't break so easily.

By the time they got home it was late. Draco was drunk but he still had enough sense about him.

"Hey, what did happen with Weasel?" Draco asked, blinking through his intoxicated haze.

"I'm really tired right now. I'll tell you tomorrow."

Draco yawned and then just nodded, mumbling something about crazy red-heads. Once Draco was upstairs and out of sight, Harry closed his bedroom door. He took his clothes off and went into the shower. As he stood there under the hot soothing water, tears finally leaked out. The last time he cried was when he found out Remus and Tonks had died. He had lost so many people throughout his fight with Voldemort and now he felt as though he lost Ron too. He wiped at his eyes. He was through crying about losing people. If Ron didn't want to be friends anymore, that was his decision. He had already made his choice.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**Emmagan**: Aww thanks! I'm glad you like it! Yes, I always try to keep the plot moving so you guys don't get bored. I promise there's lots more to come! =) I will update asap!

**bbbreeex**: Awww, you're so sweet! Well I finally updated sooner than the last couple of times, lol! I hope this helps in terms of Hermione and Ron's reactions. I was slowly building it up. There's still more to come on that. I'm so glad you like the romance! There's definitely more of that to come! =) And glad to hear the pace is believable. That's the most important thing to me. Awww, thanks so much! I feel so honored that you like my writing! I promise not to let you down. I will update asap!

**PuckurtLvr**: Aww, that's okay. Anything you say is fine. =) I just like when people take time to at least say whether they enjoyed the chapter or things that they noticed in the chapter that they want to point out (whether good or bad). I'm glad the sex scenes were believable. There will definitely be more of those to come! Awww yay! Thanks so much! I'm so glad that you enjoyed Captivation as well. My goal was to make this story even better than Captivation, with a similar light-hearted but suspenseful feel, but make it even more believable than Captivation. So hopefully you're noticing some improvements in my writing. =) I will update asap!

**Magical Witch**: Yep! Lots of sexy scenes, lol! Although this is the first chapter in a while without one. But there will be more to come! =) Yep Harry turned into an Arctic Fox. That will be mentioned later on as well. You should look up pictures of Arctic Foxes, especially in their winter fur. They're so beautiful. As promised I'm getting it up Sunday, but of course it's a little late. Still better late than never, right? Hehe! I will update asap!

**Abeham**: Lol! No, I think we all would like to punch Jace. He's just having a hard time being dumped, that's all. You will find out more about Cyprian later on. Awww, thanks! =) Glad you're still liking it! I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Yep! You will learn more about what's going on with Cyprian later. Muahahha! I won't spoil what's going on. Don't worry! Thinking too hard never hurt anyone. I think. =) But yes, it is fishy. You will find out in the near future! I will update asap!

**idreamofdrarry**: I updated sooner than the last couple of times! I will try to keep more consistent updates. Yes there is definitely more suspense to follow and of course more romance. You didn't find out about Cyprian really in this chapter, but in the near future you will. I will say this, it's not exactly how it seems. Thanks a lot for your constructive criticism. I'm usually good about going through and editing the chapter after I post but sometimes I miss some things. So thanks for pointing that out! =) I'm glad you think Hermione is in character. This is the way that I believe she would react in this situation so I'm glad it seems believable to you. Awww, thanks! I will update asap!


	23. An Unexpected Revelation

_**Luminescence**_

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: ****Sorry for the long delay! I normally don't take that long to update, but the holidays were hectic and I just found out I didn't pass the last part of my exam so I have to start studying again for the next test (which is in May). POOO! Anyway, I will update faster next time! Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 22: An Unexpected Revelation**

The morning sunlight shone through the window. Harry glanced at it and then rolled back over. He sighed heavily. It had been three days since Draco's birthday; three days since Ron found out the truth about their relationship. After Ron had stormed out of the restaurant, Hermione had owled him to reassure him to give it time. She was just being polite. He was sure Ron would never speak to him again. He felt more alone than he ever had. Neville was off journeying with the Herbologist, Luna was still traveling with her father and he wasn't sure when she'd be back. The only person who stayed constant was Draco.

Over the past few days he hadn't done much of anything, mostly moping around. He did go out and fly around a lot letting the warm breeze soothe him. Other than that he stayed in his room. He knew Draco could tell something was wrong, but the blond was probably too uncomfortable to ask.

A knock sounded at his door and Harry groaned. "What?"

"Get up we've got an assignment."

Harry rolled onto his back and rubbed his face. "I'm not in the mood to do an assignment today."

"Come on, it's important!" Draco exclaimed through the door.

Harry turned and glared at the door. He sighed irritably and then kicked the covers off. "Fine! But I need to take a shower first."

Draco hesitated for a split second, probably because Harry just snapped at him. "I'll meet you downstairs in an hour," he said.

Harry didn't even respond. Eventually Draco walked away. The sound of his footsteps vanished. Sighing heavily, he dragged himself out of bed and toward the bathroom. After a soothing a hot shower, Harry walked toward his closet to find something to wear. He stopped and glanced at his trunk. A wave of nostalgia hit him. He walked over to it and opened it up. There were pictures of him, Ron and Hermione. Some of them were with Ginny as well. They were mostly from after the war. Harry set the pictures back in the trunk and dug around until he found the small sterling silver box. He opened it up to see the beautiful silver ring with a tiny emerald, the color of Harry's eyes. The inscription on the band read _Love Always Prevails_. It was the present Ginny had gotten him after the war ended and they had gotten back together.

He hesitated and then slipped the ring on his middle finger. A part of him wanted to go back to the way things were when he was with Ginny. Back then everything was simpler. It just made sense that he would marry her since the Weasleys were already his second family. It was so predictable but at least without change it hadn't been complicated. Now all of his friendships were at risk of falling apart because of one change in his life, adding one person no one ever thought to invite into their circle.

Once he was dressed he went downstairs. Draco was in the living room eating.

"I made some extra," he said.

Harry just nodded. He went into the kitchen and grabbed a small plateful of eggs, toast and grilled Fritter Fingers. He didn't have much of an appetite but he knew he needed to eat something. A part of him wanted to stay in the kitchen. He didn't feel much like talking but he didn't want to be rude so he went into the living room and quietly sat down. He was grateful that Draco didn't seem to be in a talking mood either. They just ate in a comfortable silence.

"The train leaves at 12," Draco said.

Harry blinked out of his daze and nodded. He was too tired to respond. On the train they found an empty compartment. Harry was grateful. He didn't feel like being surrounded by people who might try talking to him or ogling his scar. He didn't even know where they were going. The train ride was thankfully not too long. They stepped off and Harry followed Draco silently. He was lost in his thoughts until Draco suddenly stopped and Harry nearly crashed into him.

They were standing in front of an enormous castle. It was twice the size of Hogwarts but had a very similar structure. Harry's eyebrows furrowed in curiosity. He wondered what kind of assignment they had in a place like that. Once they entered, Harry was even more in awe. The ceiling was so tall he could barely see it. There were so many doors of various colors all around them on the walls. They approached the center area which only had four floating colored tubes: purple, blue, green and yellow. Draco approached the blue container. It spat out a key. Suddenly one of the blue doors up high against the wall opened and a stair case began forming from the door to the ground.

"Whoa," Harry whispered.

Draco just glanced at him and smirked. He began walking up the stairs and Harry followed. The second they stepped onto the stairs it began to move like an escalator. Harry nearly lost his step. He grabbed onto Draco's arm for support.

"It would really be disappointing for you to survive through everything only to fall to your death from some stairs."

Harry glared at him. "Shut-up," he muttered.

Draco seemed satisfied. Harry gazed around at each of the doors as other people emerged either from them or going into them.

"What is this place?" Harry asked.

"It's Celestia's Castle. She was one of Merlin's descendants. A very powerful sorceress. She was before Grindlewald and Dumbledore's time but I'm sure they studied her background. She was clever though because she never wrote any of her spells down. She knew that people couldn't be trusted."

"So she was alone?" Harry asked.

They reached the door and walked through. There was a long translucent blue hallway with glimmering lights lining the walls of the narrow passage.

"Not exactly. She did get married and had kids but always kept her sorcery private. It would be interesting to know her descendants. Anyway, she had kind of a secret life with her sorcery that she kept away from her family. And she only trained women. She felt men were more susceptible to corruption and greed. So she hand-picked young women that she trained in this castle. Their identities were kept secret so no one knows who she trained. After she died this castle was shrined by the Ministry."

"Shrined?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

Draco ignored the look he gave him. "Yes. They've kept it pretty much the same with all the secret passages and whatnot."

"Like a museum," Harry said with a nod.

"No, not at all."

Harry glanced at him in confusion. "You don't even know what it means."

"Exactly. I'm rejecting anything you say that's muggle."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Whatever. So what are we looking for?"

"Just wait until we get to the room."

Sighing irritably, Harry decided not to retort. He was too tired to get into a trivial fight. They had been walking through winding corners until getting to the door minutes later. They walked inside and Harry took a minute to try to understand what he was seeing.

The floor was translucent blue like the hallway. The walls were stone. There were two winding staircases in the back of the room leading up to small lofts. Draco gestured for him to go up one of the staircases. There was a bed with a small fireplace and bureau. There was a painting on the wall and when you pressed the bellybutton of the witch (presumably Celestia) it revealed a small bathroom hidden inside. However when Harry pressed on her lips it opened up into a small room with a fridge. And if he pressed on her robe it revealed a small closet.

Harry walked back down the spiral staircase. The rest of the room had shelves, a fireplace and cauldron for brewing (which was seated in the corner), a couple of plush chairs and one small couch and then a couple stairs leading into what looked like a training area. There were charms in the floor that allowed a person to think of things to appear, like targets.

"Is this where we're staying when searching for whatever it is?" Harry asked.

Draco looked away briefly and then cleared his throat. "Actually this is just where we're staying."

Harry stared at him in confusion.

"We don't actually have an assignment," Draco said slowly.

"What? What do you mean?"

"Look I have something to confess. There is no assignment. I lied."

Harry just stared at him. Suddenly his mind went into panic mode. What if Ron was right about Draco all along? What if Hermione was right that Draco was only interested him for selfish gain? What if he was just being used? Did Draco lure him there to blackmail him or kill him?

"I know something happened with Weasel so I…you know…," Draco gestured as he struggled to get out the words. "I told Dimitri we were going to take a couple weeks off."

Harry blinked in surprise. His body relaxed and he realized how ridiculous he was being.

"I figured you needed it."

"Oh, er, thanks," Harry said, feeling a rush of gratitude. He felt rather stupid for thinking such paranoid thoughts.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "You sure it's okay? You seem kind of…"

"No, I mean yes I'm fine with this," Harry said. "Sorry. I'm just tired."

"Tired? All you've been doing is sleeping."

"Yeah, I know," Harry groaned. He rubbed his face. "Merlin, I just wish that I could have some semblance of peace, you know? Just once where something didn't blow up in my face or someone was trying to kill me! Is that too much to ask for?"

Draco stared at him, glanced around the room and then stared back at him. "Is that a rhetorical question or do you suddenly believe I'm all-powerful and omnipotent?"

Harry glared at him. "Hilarious."

"There's a kitchen in this castle somewhere. They leave you clues in your room to find things. It makes it more exciting."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "What if people get lost?"

"There's help buttons you can press. They've turned it into an Inn, sort of, but it's very unique. They try their best to make it seem like it's not an Inn, that you're just here on an adventure like back in Celestia's time. I've heard good things about it."

Harry smiled. "Well I love it so far. There seems to be a lot of rooms in this place."

Draco smirked. "Yep. And loads of secret passages. If you find some of the harder secret passages you can discover really cool treasures that you get to keep."

"Really?" Harry's eyes lit up. "When do we start?"

Draco snorted. "First I need to take care of something."

He walked into the training area and stepped on the floor charm. He closed his eyes and suddenly things began appearing. A luxurious double-sized couch made from Quizela silk (a type of blue spider that was hard to capture but whose silk could make anything luxurious) appeared in the center. Then a pure oak wood table appeared in front of the couch. Two leather floating chairs appeared a distance away by the wall where a fireplace suddenly took root. Pillows and blankets appeared as well as a hot chocolate maker magically able to make any flavor possible with a flick of a wand. A chandelier appeared from the ceiling with bright translucent crystals.

"Okay that's a bit much, even for you," Harry teased.

Giving him a look, Draco shrugged it off. "It classes it up a bit."

Harry just snorted and shook his head.

"We have to find the clues. They're hidden in the room somewhere."

"Okay," Harry said, grinning. "Whoever finds a clue first wins."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Wins what?"

Harry shrugged. "Anything."

The blond's lips curled into a grin. "You're on."

The two of them instantly split up. Harry walked over to the fireplace and began to run his hands over the walls. Draco was searching underneath furniture and behind. Harry glanced over his shoulder at Draco, watching him and the blond caught his gaze. They both hurried around the large room. Harry rushed up the spiral staircase to the bedrooms. He searched the paintings, the bureaus, everything.

"Found it!" he heard Draco's gleeful voice.

Harry groaned. He trudged back down the stairs. Draco was twirling a rolled up parchment in his hand.

"Where?" Harry asked.

"I'm not telling."

"Seriously?!" Harry snapped. "Come on!"

Draco smirked. "Maybe later."

Harry fought the urge to strangle him as Draco unrolled the parchment.

"It's a map," he said as Harry came to stand next to him. "This will make it easier to figure out where the secret passageways are. If we find a good one –"

"We'll get a prize!" Harry interrupted. "Then let's explore."

Draco stared at the map. "We should go here first."

Harry glanced at it. It was on the eleventh floor. There were multiple hallways that lead to various areas. Harry agreed so they left their room to begin exploring. They made their way down the hallway. In order to get to the eleventh floor from where they were on the eighth, they found a staircase leading up to a painting.

"Now let me go firrssssstttttttttttttt!" Draco's voice echoed as he slid down out of sight.

"Draco!" Harry exclaimed, stepping forward.

He tried to catch him too late. Harry tumbled forward and slid down the smooth, slanted hallway, which was more like a slide, until he collapsed at the bottom on top of Draco.

"Get off," Draco said, tapping his leg.

Harry grumbled but slid off and stood up.

"That was unexpected," Harry said, looking around. They were in a small room with four doors.

"I think we should take this door," Draco said, pointing.

"Where do you think these all lead?"

"Probably to different floors," Draco said. "Let's go this way."

Harry followed him through the door diagonal to them. They emerged in a hallway lined with various statues. The ceiling was tall and the windows on the right emitted rays of sun. Harry glanced over at Draco who was staring at the statues. Just being there in the beautiful castle beneath the rays of sunlight was soothing. Although he was still afraid of losing his friends forever and upset at Ron's reaction, Draco actually succeeded in cheering him up a bit.

Harry looked at the statues as they passed. They were all of various witches all dressed in elegant robes. All except one that was slightly different. Harry stopped suddenly. This one particular statue was of a witch who was much younger than the others, probably no older than twelve or thirteen. She was wearing a simple robe and she looked pensive.

"Why are you stopping? The hallway ends up there," Draco said. "There's probably more rooms to choose from. I can see several doors."

"What if it's a distraction?"

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

Harry turned around. "All the doors. What if it's a distraction? You said that the secret passages would be well hidden. This statue is different from the rest."

Draco came up and stared at it. "Maybe a little, but that could be a coincidence."

"Maybe not," Harry said.

He studied the statue a bit more. All the others were holding wands or staffs, but she wasn't holding anything. However, she did have a ring on one of her fingers. As Harry reached down to examine it, Draco tapped his foot impatiently.

Harry touched the stone on the ring. It was hard and didn't sink in. His eyebrows furrowed. In his attempt to try to take the ring off, it moved very slightly. Blinking in surprise, Harry then turned the ring around her stone finger. The second it came all around it clicked.

"Did you hear that?" Harry whispered in excitement.

Draco had stopped tapping his foot. "Yeah. Nothing's happening."

Harry studied the girl's face. Her eyes were looking off in the distance instead of straight ahead. He looked where she was facing. It was a wall in between a couple statues. Harry walked over to the wall and felt around. He felt a piece of the wall sink in. There was a click and the wall suddenly moved aside to reveal a secret passage.

"Yes!" Harry exclaimed.

Draco looked impressed. "All right, I admit that was clever."

Harry smirked. "I'm sorry I didn't quite catch that. Did you say _I'm_ clever?"

Rolling his eyes, he pushed past him. Harry followed him through the passage. Strangely, the passage led around and then up a flight of narrow stairs. They came to a gold door and Draco smirked at him.

"I think we may have stumbled upon one of the special passages."

"You mean I did," Harry corrected.

Draco just stared at him in annoyance before reaching out for the doorknob. The room they entered was small. It was completely devoid of furniture. There were no windows only small floating candles at every corner of the room. It was a subtle white light just like the moon making it both eerie and intriguing. In the very center of the room was a pedestal. Atop the pedestal was a gold box.

The both exchanged looks of excitement. They both stood side by side as Draco lifted the top off.

"A book?" He asked with a look of disappointment.

"Don't judge a book by its cover," Harry said, grinning.

Draco glared at him.

Harry opened the book and saw a card with glimmering words on it. He read it aloud: "_You have stumbled upon a sacred room! One of few to be found. This book describes an ancient plant that's been around for thousands of years whose leaves were valued for its use in any potion. It was hunted for its value and was hidden magically by Celestia and her followers to protect it. It was a mutual arrangement since Celestia was rumored to have used the plant's leaves. It is thought she made and drank tea every day using the leaves and that's why she was such a powerful sorceress. Over time information has been put together to reveal where the plant could have been hidden. This is a book of all the clues to piece that together. If you follow it, you will be greatly rewarded."_

"Greatly rewarded? With what? Plant leaves?" Draco exclaimed.

Harry shrugged. "It sounds like something Dimitri might be interested in."

"We're not here for work, Potter. We're here for adventure and excitement."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Haven't you had enough of that already?"

Draco gave him a look. "Being tortured and nearly killed by You-Know-Who is not adventure and excitement."

"Well, who knows, maybe we'll find more than the plant if we follow this book. It's here for a reason," Harry said. "So come on."

Rolling his eyes, Draco sighed. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

They took the book back with them and used the map to find another way back to their room. They sat in front of the fireplace on the small couch reading through the clues. They both had small fridges up in their room with food that they could heat up with a flick of their wands. There wasn't any butterbeer but there were flavorful drinks that turned to any flavor you thought of when touching it.

"I think this means it's outside of the castle," Draco said after an hour of reading through the clues.

Harry stared at it and nodded. "Yeah it could mean that. But where outside? There's too much to explore. How long are we here for?"

"I could only book us for a week because they're pretty packed."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "I've barely seen anyone except for in the lobby area."

"That's because it's meant to feel like this, like you're alone. If you saw everyone else it would just feel like another resort."

Harry smiled. "That's actually clever."

"Clearly," Draco drawled.

"You know, you take the fun out of everything."

"And you put danger in everything. So we're even."

Rolling his eyes, Harry took a sip of his blackberry fizz drink. Glancing at Draco's bottle which was a deep burgundy, he asked: "What's your flavor?"

Draco glanced at it briefly. "Phoenix blood."

Harry's eyes widened considerably. Draco glanced at him and noticed his mouth was hanging open.

"Not literally phoenix blood, Potter," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "It's a flavor where they grind up phoenix feathers, mix it in hot fizzy tea and with a couple drops of water from a pure rainfall it makes a nice taste."

"Can I try some?"

Draco shrugged and offered him the bottle. Harry took a sip. It was only subtle sweet, almost like a hint of honey and a sort of flowery taste.

"It's good."

"Of course it is," Draco said, taking it back. "How do they expect people to find this plant with all these random clues?"

Harry shrugged. "Maybe they don't. It's why it's a challenge."

"This is so frustrating!" Draco exclaimed, tossing the book on the floor.

"Well we're obviously not going to figure it out tonight. Let's sleep on it."

Sighing irritably, Draco leaned back against the couch. They sat there in silence for a while. They had been exploring the castle for a couple hours and just spent another hour looking over clues. They made some dinner and sat in front of the fire for a while.

"So, Draco," Harry said as Draco turned to him, "are you happy?"

The blond stared at him curiously. "Happy? What do you mean?"

"I mean with everything you've been through, losing your friends, your family, getting tortured by Voldemort and now spending all your time with me."

He stared into Draco's gray-blue eyes. The blond stared right back. Harry watched his eyelashes narrow a little bit.

"Why do you ask?"

"It's just a simple question," Harry said.

The blond turned back to the fireplace. Harry watched his fair blond bangs fall forward across the side of his face. Just watching him Harry marveled at how beautiful he was with his fair skin, oval face and bright eyes that were staring at the fire. Draco looked peaceful. Without his taunting remarks or immature behavior he looked much older and more enticing.

"I'll be happy when we break the vow," he said quietly.

Harry blinked out of his daze and then nodded silently.

Draco turned to face him. "So what happened with Weasley?"

Sighing, Harry took a sip of his drink. Then he began explaining everything. Draco sat there silently for a few seconds.

"So he knows?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I mean, I didn't say it outright, but he sort of put two and two together and then I told him he knew who I was dating. He just kind of figured it out."

Draco breathed out heavily. "Great. Now your friends are probably going to try and kill me."

"No, they won't," Harry said. "They just probably won't speak to me ever again."

He glanced away not wanting to look directly at Draco when he said that. It was hard enough to admit. Harry could feel Draco's gaze on him.

"And…," he trailed off, "you're okay with that?"

"No, but there's nothing I can do. I can't force them to accept it," Harry said. "Hermione said to give it time so I'm giving it time."

"So what happens if Weasley doesn't come around?"

"Then I won't see much of Hermione either," Harry said quietly. "I think Hermione would still check in on me by secure owl every now and then, but it wouldn't feel like a real friendship. I have no idea what Ginny thinks. I'm sure Ron's told her everything by now. Ginny's got a boyfriend now though so it's not like we need to stay friends. She'll probably just move on with her life, get married and have kids, just like Mrs. Weasley wants and then they'll be a big happy family," Harry said, turning to face him. "They won't need me."

Draco's eyes were wide and bright, almost innocently looking as he stared at him. He could see sorrow in them, but he wasn't sure if it was directed at him or from the things he too had experienced. Harry turned back to the fire, unable to keep the gaze for long. After a few minutes of silence, he felt Draco shift closer to him.

"Well my family might need me because I'm the only heir, but they don't exactly want me."

Harry's eyes met his. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that if they could have someone else be their son, they would dump me. I'm not what they envisioned as a son. I've tried my whole life to meet up to their expectations. It was mostly for my father that I joined Voldemort and took his place as a Death Eater. And look where it got me," he said shaking his head. "And then when the war ended my father thought that we dodged being captured. The whole world was just grateful Voldemort was dead, and the Ministry was in chaos with Minister Scrimageour being dead. But then Shaklebolt stepped up to the plate and Aurors came to our house to take us in. I just remember my mother standing there lecturing me about helping my father. I lived my entire life doing everything for him! That's all that I did was do things to make him happy and it was never enough!"

Harry reached out to place a hand over Draco's clenched fist. Draco slowly turned toward him.

"I understand. Trust me, I do. But you can't live for someone else."

"Yeah," Draco said, snorting. "I realize that now. I finally stood up to my family, finally realizing breaking away would be for the best and I can't even enjoy my freedom because it's temporary. I should've known that they would find a way to force me to do what they wanted. My father has never cared about anyone's happiness but his own. And to be honest, I don't even think he knows what happiness is. Even when our family was working with Voldemort and in his good graces, my father was still irritable all the time."

"Well like you said, nothing you would've done would've made him happy. Hell, even taking Voldemort's place as the next dark lord wouldn't make him happy, Draco. You just have to accept that. He's selfish and he'll always try to make everyone around him feel inferior, even you."

Draco sighed. "Yeah, I know. That's why I want to break this Vow so bad. If I have to live with him belittling me and controlling me for the rest of my life, I'll go insane.

Harry squeezed his hand. "We'll break it."

Draco glanced at him and nodded slowly. Harry smiled.

"What?"

"You called Voldemort by his name," Harry said. "That's an improvement."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He snorted. "I guess."

Suddenly a thought came to mind. "Hey, do you think the potion has worn off?"

Draco shrugged. "I hope so. It's been months now."

_Can you hear me?_

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You didn't hear that?"

"No. Were you thinking something?"

Harry nodded. "I guess it's worn off."

"Thank Merlin," Draco groaned. "Now we don't have to worry about dreaming or what we're thinking."

"Why?" Harry's eyes narrowed playfully. "Are you thinking bad things about me that I should know about?"

Draco smirked. "Well I certainly wouldn't admit it if I was."

Harry glared. "Well that means you don't know what I'm thinking about you either."

"Oh, whatever will I do?" Draco drawled.

Harry snorted and took a swig of his drink.

"We should talk about something happier. How about Quidditch? Do you still keep up with it?" Harry asked.

"Of course, at least the important matches I do."

"And who do you think is going to win the championships?"

"That's easy," Draco smirked. "It's going to be the Vulcanoes from Hawaii."

"What? What about the Tyraneous Trolls from New Zealand? They've been pretty much blasting through the matches."

"Please," Draco said rolling his eyes. "It's obvious that their Chasers are their strongest but their Seeker isn't as fast or cunning as the Vulcanoes."

The two of them lapsed into debate talking about the various teams and their strengths and weaknesses. The distraction was relief for both of them. After a while they went up the spiral staircases to their beds. While the spiral staircases were separated, their beds were part of the same structure. There was a wall between their rooms, but both of their beds were up against the wall between them with the head of bed facing the wall. So even though they slept apart Harry still felt close. He could hear Draco breathing on the other side of the wall. It lulled him to sleep.

Harry woke up the next morning fairly early. He got up to make some coffee and then went to read the book again while Draco was still sleeping. He read the introduction again, about how people used to worship the plant in order to get some of its leaves by leaving treasured items and other things of value for it. He read the clues again not really understanding what they were missing. Suddenly, he heard a sound and saw Draco running down the spiral staircase.

"I've got it!"

"What?"

"The clues!" Draco exclaimed. "You have to read between the lines! Here, you see how this one makes it seem like it's in some random forest, it's not just in any random forest! Read the line closely!"

Harry squinted. "_By blending into forests and woods, the Mystic plant can go unseen. Like a sanctuary it stays hidden, appearing only with the crescent moon."_ Harry stopped and gazed up at him curiously. "I don't get it."

Draco sighed in exasperation. "Sanctuary, crescent moon? Anything?"

Harry shook his head.

"Seriously, Potter, did you live under a rock? There is a forest called the Santuous Serenity where a body of water shaped like a crescent moon flows within it! People nick-named it the Crescent Stream."

"Where is it?" Harry asked, jumping up from the couch.

"It's not that far!" Draco said, waving his wand over himself to get dressed. He waved his wand toward Harry, not even giving him a second to get his own wand.

"Hey. I didn't want to wear this," Harry complained, staring down at his tight black Demiguise leather pants and dark green long-sleeved shirt with a subtle v-neck.

"Too bad," Draco said with a smirk. "Now hurry up and get your wand!"

Harry grumbled and went upstairs to get his wand. They both took off on their brooms. It was only a twenty minute flight. Harry immediately saw the stream from above and it was shaped like a crescent moon, a very large, slightly odd shaped one, but still similar. The forest itself wasn't as large as he thought.

"We have to be careful."

"Why?" Harry asked as they landed.

"It's guarded by Centaurs."

"You couldn't have mentioned that _before_ we left?" Harry exclaimed.

"Oh relax. You can make friends with them."

"What?!" Harry snapped. "That was a different centaur under much different circumstances."

They entered the thick forest and instantly Harry noticed something unique. The ground beneath them was shimmering.

"What is that?" he whispered.

"It's from the creek. Whenever the moon shines on it the moonstones on the bottom of the creek glow in response so when the water seeps into the soil it makes it shimmer. But you can only see it when the sun or moon is shining directly on it."

Harry blinked and then looked at other areas that didn't have the sun shining on it. Draco was right. The soil looked normal.

"Now according to those clues that must mean the plant probably hangs out somewhere around the creek."

"That's still miles of searching," Harry said. "Can't we narrow it down anymore?"

"I'm trying!"

"Wait, shhh!" Harry hissed.

They both fell silent. Harry could sense something in the distance. He knew they were being watched. Very quietly, they both began heading toward the creek.

"I see it there," Draco whispered.

Just as he pointed, a large figure jumped out in front of them. Draco stumbled backward into him and Harry nearly lost his footing. They both stared at the four large centaurs surrounding them.

"We mean no harm," Harry said, putting his hands up.

"You are trespassing," the centaur in front of them said, walking toward them. He towered over them.

"We're staying the Celestia Castle –"

Another centaur snorted and made a slight neighing noise, only gruffer. "We don't care where you're from, human."

"He's Harry Potter!" Draco exclaimed quickly, staying close to Harry's side.

The centaur in front of them turned his head curiously. His hooves roughly hit the ground as he came right up to him.

"Harry Potter?" he asked, bending his head down to sniff him. "We've heard about you."

"Do you, uh, know Firenze?" Harry asked uncertainly.

The centaur lifted his head. "Of course. He is one of our kin."

"Not exactly," a female centaur snorted. "He stays with their kind. I wouldn't consider him faithful."

"Being around humans isn't wrong," Harry said defensively. "You get angry at humans for being ignorant about your kind, so the same is true for you. Firenze wanted to learn about us and also teach us about your kind so that we would understand how to respect you."

"Yeah," Draco said lamely.

Harry just gave him an annoyed look. The centaur bent his head towards him until their noses were almost touching. As he gazed into the large hazel eyes he saw something flicker in them, a kind of sparkle or spark of some sort. Harry blinked curiously. The centaur's eyes seemed to glow a golden color, but then it was gone.

"This human has no ill intentions."

"I'll believe that when Sirennia examines them," another centaur stated gruffly. "You're still in training."

The centaur that had approached him just raised his head, not seemingly offended. "Then let's take them to Sirennia and she can tell us for sure."

"Come with us willingly humans, or face the consequences," one centaur said, stepping forward in a threatening manner.

"We'll come," Harry said.

Draco was gripping his arm tightly. He was amused by Draco's reaction but didn't want to smile in case of inadvertently offending the centaurs. The others went on ahead and the one that approached him stayed behind them. Harry turned around during their walk to glance at the centaur, who stared back at him.

"What's your name?"

The centaur cocked his head curiously. "I am Tinyen."

"Nice to meet you," Harry said.

Draco glanced backward at them. Another centaur was also watching but turned back ahead.

"You are an unusual human," Tinyen said.

"Yes, he is," Draco muttered.

Tinyen glanced at Draco curiously but didn't ask what he meant. To their dismay they were taken away from the creek and toward the heart of the forest. Deep within the lush trees and vines, hidden behind a vast wall of overgrown weeds too thick to penetrate was a breath-taking sight. There was lush grass the color of snow beneath their feet that covered the area. Trees and bushes glistened and strange flowers bloomed around them. There were other creatures and phoenixes flying about. There were vines that hung down, making it look like what Harry pictured the Garden of Eden might look like. There were caves made out of bark and rock that they passed, neatly built and large enough for several centaurs to fit. It must've been where they slept. Many other centaurs stuck their heads out curiously to watch them being brought through the area toward a large hill where an enormous white tree stood with glimmering leaves. As they approached a beautiful white centaur appeared. Her eyes were a misty blue. Beside her were several brown and black centaurs, some of them double the size of Tinyen. They were obviously there to protect her.

Harry nudged Draco and then bowed slowly. Draco followed his lead. Sirennia studied them carefully before approaching. The other centaurs around her made move to follow but she turned and just gave them one look. They backed off slowly. She approached them until she was inches apart then she bent her head down. The spark in her eyes made her eyes seem to light up as if there was a candle inside of them. She stared into their eyes for only a minute before lifting her head up.

"They mean us no harm," she said softly.

The other centaurs seemed to relax. Some of them made some noises. Harry got the impression they still didn't like them being there.

"Why have you humans come into our domain?"

"To find the Mystic plant," Harry said.

Sirennia turned her head curiously. Her eyes never seemed to blink. "Mystic?"

"We work for a Herbology company and studying plants is our job. We heard that a plant called Mystic may live out here."

"You're here to capture it?" she asked.

"No, no. We just want a few of its leaves to study it."

"Yeah," Draco said quietly.

Sirennia gazed at him and Draco shrunk back a little. Then she turned back to Harry.

"You are Harry Potter?"

"Yes," he said.

"You are, what is the word, friends with one of our kind?"

"Yes, Firenze."

She stared at him curiously but didn't question any further. "What is this plant's appearance?"

"Oh! We have a picture," Draco said quickly, fumbling around for the book. He nearly dropped it in the process. Harry held back his laughter. Finally, he opened it up to the first page where a drawing of the plant was. It was taken after one of the drawings of the plant that had been found among Celestia's things.

Sirennia stared at the picture and then raised her head. Her eyes wandered elsewhere and her ears perked up.

"I have seen a plant like that."

Harry and Draco exchanged looks.

"I will take you to it."

"Thank you, Sirennia," Harry said.

She glanced at them and gestured with her head for them to follow. They did so and her protectors were right behind them. Draco glanced back at them nervously.

"They don't look very friendly," he whispered.

"This was your idea," Harry whispered back.

They stopped nearby the stream and she gazed at them. "I have seen it across the stream here. You will have to find it yourselves. It likes to dwell between those two trees. This plant will require something in return."

"I understand," Harry said.

Draco stared at him in confusion.

"Thank you," Harry said.

"Good luck on your journey," she said, nodding toward them.

Harry bowed back to her and Draco followed suit. Then Sirennia turned and was escorted back towards her home by her protectors. The two of them stood there for a second.

"See, everything worked out just fine," Draco said.

Harry rolled his eyes and walked forward. They both used a flight charm to hop over the large stream to get to the other side. The two large trees Sirennia had pointed out were white like the tree they saw her in front of only they were much smaller.

"This is a very weird stream. It seems to turn things white," Harry said quietly.

Draco shrugged. "It's just because of the moonstones I'm sure."

As they stepped through the two white trees they saw a patch of white grass nearby completely isolated from any trees. It was like a small meadow in the center of the forest.

"Where is the plant?"

"It might be hiding," Harry whispered. "But Sirennia said it would be here. I think we have to offer it something."

"Offer it what?" Draco whispered. "We didn't bring anything! I didn't realize it wanted something in return."

"I did read that from the book," Harry said.

"And you didn't think to tell me that _before_ we left?" Draco shot back.

"Don't worry," Harry said quietly, "I have something to offer."

Draco stared at him curiously and before he could ask Harry approached the white patch of grass. He knelt down before the grass.

"Mystic plant, if you're here, we need some of your leaves," Harry said. "I offer you up a personal treasure of mine."

As he said it he slipped the silver ring with an emerald stone off his finger and he placed it in the center of the white grass. He was about to stand up and leave when he heard something. He saw a strange white plant that looked like it had feathers all around its head. It had a long neck made out of green plant-like skin and a white body. Vines came out of its lower body to act like legs as it slid down from a nearby tree and began to approach him. The plant was no bigger than an average dog. It scurried diagonally and stopped, shrunk down by bending its flexible vine legs and just sat for a few seconds as if studying him. Then it hopped back up and scurried a little closer and then shrunk down in the grass.

Harry watched it do that several times until it finally approached the white grassy area. Harry stood still as it came closer. It stopped still in front of him. Harry stared at it uncertainly. He couldn't see any eyes but felt as though the plant was staring him down. The plant's viney legs stretched upward as the plant seemed to peer at him, bending forward. Then one viney leg reached out and lifted the ring up. It stared at it for a second before its feathery leaves suddenly burst apart separating from the body and revealing a tiny mouth. It plopped the ring in its mouth and swallowed as its feathery leaves zapped back into place like a magnet pulling metal. Harry blinked several times in shock. It apparently liked to eat things, although he didn't see how metal could taste good. The Mystic plant then stepped forward a little closer. Suddenly it seemed to sneeze, a strange sound almost like a soft explosion of feathers, and several leaves fell onto the white area. Its head straightened up.

"Thank you," Harry said reaching out toward the leaves slowly.

The plant just stood there as he picked up the several leaves. The plant's feathery leaves rustled and seemed to move revealing a small hole where the mouth was. It moved up then down and stopped. Almost as though the plant was smacking its lips. Harry just stared at it wide-eyed and uncertain. His eyes moved to the right and left slowly and then back to the plant. He blinked. Was it expecting him to do something? Slowly, he turned his head toward Draco who was gesturing for him to run to him. Harry began backing away slowly. The plant just stood there. Harry finally got the courage to stand up on his legs. He turned and started walking quickly. When he turned to look over his shoulder the Mystic plant was crouching down again and began hobbling on its viney legs, as if mimicking him. Harry stared at it in both amusement and confusion and nearly crashed into one of the white trees.

"That is the strangest plant I've ever seen," Draco said. "I hope we get a good prize for this."

"Well if not at least we can bring Dimitri something."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yay."

They both jumped back over the stream and Harry saw a couple centaurs peering out at them.

"They're probably just making sure we leave," Draco said.

"I want to talk to Sirennia again," Harry said.

"What?! Potter, why must you always tempt fate?" Draco hissed.

"You can leave if you're scared, _Malfoy_," Harry said, smirking.

The blond glared at him and muttered under his breath as he followed behind him. The centaurs watched them carefully. Harry stopped a few feet in front of them.

"I would like to speak with Sirennia again before we leave," Harry said.

The centaurs glanced at one another and then turned and walked away. Harry decided to follow them. Draco hurried behind him. They led them back to the large white tree where Sirennia was sitting. She saw them approaching and stood up.

"Harry Potter," she greeted.

"Sirennia," Harry said, bowing slightly. "I was wondering, do you know what this plant's leaves can do?"

She stared at the white leaves in his hands.

"What are you doing?" Draco whispered.

"I just wondered if you knew whether or not these leaves might be able to break, say, an Unbreakable Vow?" Harry asked.

Draco stared at him and then toward her. Sirennia stepped forward and her eyes glowed again as she stared at the leaves.

"An Unbreakable Vow is much too powerful," she said softly as other centaurs watched.

Draco's gaze moved to the ground.

"It's okay," Harry said to him. "We'll still find that plant-creature. I just thought maybe this plant's abilities would help since Celestia valued it so much."

"The leaves are to be greatly valued," Sirennia said.

Draco and Harry stared up at her. She walked away from them and then turned to gaze in their direction.

"The leaves can reveal what the eyes cannot see."

Harry nodded. "Thank you."

After bowing, the two of them headed back out of the forest. The centaurs let them pass without following them. They did watch them leave. Once they were out of the forest they both breathed a sigh of relief.

"I don't know why you bothered asking her that. What does that even mean?"

"I don't know," Harry said.

They flew back to their room. Draco grabbed one of the leaves and placed it in the secret area inside the wall by one of the staircases where he found the map. Instantly confetti burst into the air. Letters appeared above them: _**Congratulations on finding a major secret! You have earned 99 galleons, 5 sickles and 5 knuts! **_

"Yes! Money!" Draco exclaimed.

Harry smiled. "You can keep it."

Draco's eyebrows rose. "You don't want any? Oh, that's right, you're wealthy and I'm not anymore. You just feel sorry for me."

"I just don't need any more. And yes, you're right, I feel sorry for you. Now take it."

Draco rolled his eyes but took the sack of coins anyway. Harry gazed down at the glimmering white leaves in his hands and thought about what Sirennia said. _It can reveal what the eyes cannot see. _Suddenly, Harry's head snapped up.

"The wand!"

"What?" Draco asked, gazing up at him from the couch.

"Draco! Sirennia said that these leaves can reveal what the eyes cannot see, meaning the unseen. The wand is our only clue about this plant-creature. Maybe the leaves can reveal what happened to that witch! Maybe we'll finally get a real clue about the creature!"

Draco jumped up. "That means we have to petition to see the wand immediately!"

"I'll send a secure owl to Kingsley and see what the status is. He said he would owl the Minister of Magic there in Ireland to give a recommendation to help the process start."

"We still might have to fill out some paperwork."

Harry shrugged. "Either way, we'll find a way to get an audience with them. I'll owl him right now and hopefully we'll get a response by tomorrow."

"Yeah, that's even if the Minister of Magic in Ireland will listen to Minister Shaklebolt."

"It's worth a shot," Harry said.

Draco sighed heavily. "Yeah."

For the rest of the day they did some more exploring of the castle. While they didn't find any more rare secret passages, they did have fun finding amazing rooms in the castle. They even dueled each other when they found an arena. And Draco nearly got attacked by a knight that came to life when he tried to pull on its weapon. Harry laughed so hard at the sight of Draco screaming and running from the knight.

By the time dinner came around they were tired but content. They sat eating dinner on the couch in front of the fireplace. Draco had set up a charm above the fireplace with a big translucent screen so they could watch some live Quidditch matches. Harry hadn't watched Quidditch in a while. It was a nice relaxing change.

After dinner, they were seated on the couch in their pajamas drinking their flavored beverages. Suddenly, Draco smirked at him.

"What?" Harry asked.

"We had a bet remember? Whoever found the clue in our room first would win."

"All right, fine. What do you want?"

Draco moved forward and took his bottle from him, setting them both on the floor. Then he grabbed Harry's arm and pulled him up against him. Harry turned at the slightly awkward angle, brushing their noses together. Draco bent forward but instead of kissing him on the lips, his lips brushed by his ear.

"I want you to pleasure me with your mouth."

Harry's heart skipped a beat. He had never done anything like that before. It didn't sound hard, but he was still nervous about experimenting with Draco. Then again, they had already had sex more than once. Harry's eyes met Draco's.

"You mean you want me to…?" Harry trailed off, glancing down at the blond's crotch.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Obviously. Have you ever done that?"

Harry shook his head. "No."

He didn't even need to ask if Draco had done it before. He was pretty sure he had, and not just because when Draco had done it to him briefly during their first time having sex (and it had been amazing), but because he knew Draco had done just about everything but intercourse before they were together.

"It's not that hard," Draco said, lying down on the couch.

Harry pressed his lips together uncertainly before slowly climbing on top of him. He decided to try to do it exactly how Draco had done it to him. First he pressed his lips gently against the blond's. Draco closed his eyes which made Harry feel less nervous now that he wasn't watching. Draco didn't have a shirt on and only had his black sweatpants. Harry kissed down his neck and across his chest. Draco breathed deeply, sighing contently as Harry went lower and lower. His skin was glistening since the room was dark and the only thing producing light was the fire. Harry turned the fire down with a wave of his wand so the small lights around the room would glow like the moon. When Draco's skin was bathed in the moon-like light, his skin seemed ethereal. It was hard not to stare at his glistening ivory skin and light hair. Draco's eyes were still closed and Harry began pulling down his sweatpants. He realized that Draco wasn't wearing any underwear. He stared at the blond's member, having only seen it once really up close and personal.

Slowly Harry bent down and pressed his lips to his pubic bone just below his hip. Draco's body moved and Harry heard a soft groan. Harry continued to trail his lips down his hip and toward his inner thigh. The blond's member bobbed a little when his body moved. Harry felt his body begin to react. He placed his hands on either side of Draco's hips and touched his lips to the tip of the member. Draco groaned softly, trying to move his hips upward. Harry held him firmly down and then slowly opened his mouth around Draco's erection. Draco's hips jerked and he groaned loudly. Harry could feel the member pulse in his mouth as he slowly let it slide farther inside.

He couldn't even believe what he was doing. It wasn't quite as bad as he thought. Once the member was inside he wasn't exactly sure what to do. He began sucking on it just like he would a popsicle. Draco's moans became louder. Harry realized he was doing the right thing. The sounds Draco was making caused his own member to harden. Harry continued to suck and then began slowly moving his head up and down. He began releasing the member by pulling his mouth away a bit and then sucking more back in. He did this over and over and Draco's voice became louder. His back arched and his hands gripped Harry's hair tightly. He could feel Draco's member swell in his mouth.

Harry groaned, feeling more and more aroused. His groan trembled through Draco's member, making him release a cry of pleasure. His hand jerked in Harry's hair and he thrust his hips upward. Harry almost didn't have the sense to hold him down, but he managed to. As his mouth moved over Draco's member he stuck his tongue out at the same time to massage the tip. Draco arched his back again. The blond then spread his legs wider. Harry could feel his own member dripping pre-cum. As Draco continued to cry out and move his body erotically, Harry's pace began to quicken. While he held down Draco's hips he moved his thumbs to massage just next to the base of his member causing Draco's mouth to open as he groaned loudly. His pitch began to rise and Harry knew he was close.

He pulled his mouth upward until only the tip was in his mouth and he began sucking on the tip. Draco moaned, twisting his hands in his hair. His hips continued to thrust upward. Harry accidentally loosened his grip on his hips and Draco pulled Harry's head down, forcing the member all the way back into his mouth as he began thrusting in quick thrusts. Thankfully Draco had enough sense not to thrust all the way in or Harry would gag, but he was thrusting just enough. Harry groaned at the feeling of Draco taking control and the second that Draco's head tilted backward as his orgasm hit him, Harry felt his own orgasm building. Once he felt Draco's release in his mouth and heard Draco's moans of pleasure, Harry felt his own member twitch as his orgasm hit.

Harry pulled his mouth away and spit Draco's seed onto the couch. The blond still had his head tilted backward. Harry waved his wand to clean up the couch just as Draco opened his eyes.

"Do you need me to reciprocate?" he asked, staring at him through half-shut eyelids.

"No," Harry said, wiping his mouth.

Draco grinned widely. "Not bad. I'm surprised that was your first time."

Harry shrugged and smiled. "It wasn't that hard."

They both collapsed on opposite ends of the couch, relishing in the coolness of the blue fire. After a little while they both decided to go to bed. Harry slid into his warm bed and the mattress sunk down. He sighed contently. He heard Draco from the other side of the wall. Harry craned his neck upward. The wall between them had both of their beds exactly on the other side. He wondered if Draco would be able to hear him. Harry grinned.

He tapped on the wall above his headboard. "Dracooooo?" He called out.

"What?" He heard Draco's muffled voice. "Miss me already?" he drawled.

Harry snorted. "Whatever makes you sleep at night."

"Hilarious, Potter."

"We could do Morse code," Harry said, knocking on the wall.

"I have no idea what the hell you're talking about."

"Oh, right," Harry said.

"Is that another muggle term?" He asked, annoyed.

"Oh look at the time. It's late. Going to sleep now," Harry said quickly.

"I'm going to throw something at you."

Harry stifled a laugh. He heard Draco sigh and then it was quiet. Even in the silence Harry felt comforted. He didn't feel alone. It was in that moment that Harry realized it. Draco was more than a friend or companion and more than a coworker. The reason Harry risked his friendships over Draco was not because he was experimenting or because he was bored or lonely. It was much more.

When the thought hit him he felt his throat constrict a bit. There were very few people that he had allowed to enter deep into his heart. Somehow Draco got there where his friends and Sirius and Remus were, and he did it in less time. Harry was suddenly grateful the Adstringo potion wore off as the shocking thought echoed in his mind.

_I love him. _

Harry stared up at the dark ceiling. Now he really couldn't lose Draco to the vow. If they had to break up, it would be even worse than how he felt after he broke up with Ginny. At least now they had the Mystic plant leaves. And just maybe it would help them figure out a clue to the mysterious plant-creature.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**Truth-Between-the-Lies:** Thanks for your review! I think I sent you a private message so hopefully you got that. I'm so glad you love the story so far! I'm so happy to hear that. My one goal is to make it believable so I'm so glad you think it is. I know, I personally hate when they just jump right into the relationship. It's hard to really build up to it because even as the author you get impatient and just want them to be together, lol! Anyway, I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Sorry about that. I normally don't take so long to update. I'll be better next time! Always check my profile it will tell you when something will be updated by or if it's delayed for some reason. I will update asap! =)

**Emmagan**: I know, Ron's a big meanie head! You will just have to wait to see how things turn out eventually. I'm glad you liked the chapter regardless though. Hopefully this one was worth the wait! I will update asap! =)

**bbbreeex**: Glad you liked the breaking point, lol! I think you're the only one. Awww, well thanks for that, because this time you certainly had to wait longer for an update, but I hope it was worth the wait. I thought the holidays would make it easier but they were just so hectic and I only had a few days off. Anyway, I will update faster next time! And about Harry's co-workers, you will just have to wait and see about that. That's a ways away though. I will update asap! =)

**Abeham**: Yeah, his reaction was more of shock and disgust than rage. There was a little bit of rage, but thankfully they were in a public place so Ron was really holding back, not to mention he was still in shock too. Draco is just more reserved in showing emotions, but he's slowly breaking out of his shell. As you see in this chapter Draco knew that Harry needed some cheering up after the Ron thing. Draco wasn't in any condition at his birthday to hug him or anything for a couple reasons: one, he was drunk and not entirely aware of everything, and two: they're still bonding so Draco isn't going to go right to hugging him right now. Their relationship is still developing so they're not quite there yet, but they are falling deeper for each other. =) I will update asap!

**idreamofdrarry**: Aww, glad you liked the chapter despite Ron. Yeah he's very narrow minded, and hot headed, like always. You will just have to wait and see how things turn out. Yes, poor Harry, but at least he's got Draco who can cheer him up. =) I will update asap!

**wac67**: Thanks for that. I took it out completely, lol! Ever since going to court reporting school (where everything is spelled phonetically) my spelling has gone downhill somewhat. That's what I get for learning a new language, lol! Anyway glad you like the story so far! I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Yep, Ron had made his decision, for now. You will just have to wait and see how it turns out. =) I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I will update asap!

**Ruby Silken Sun: **Thanks for your review. Oh yes I realize that Sirius wasn't perfect so that comparison was only to show that people born into dark families aren't always exactly like their families. I will update asap!

**Guest**: Lol! Yes, Ron does need to stop being annoying! Unfortunately, not everyone loves Draco. I completely understand. No worries. =) Work has been brutal for me too which is why it has taken me so long to update. Plus I have to study again for a test for my national exams (to be certified). POO! Glad you enjoyed it. Hope this chapter was just as good. I will update asap!


	24. The Wand of the Witch, Part 1

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 23: The Wand of the Witch, Part 1**

The next few days they were there they decided to explore the rest of the castle. It was a fairly big castle with many hidden rooms and moving staircases (like Hogwarts). Harry still hadn't gotten an owl from the Minister. He was becoming concerned that maybe they wouldn't be able to meet with the Minister of Ireland. What was worse was that Draco had suddenly become a bit more distant and moody. It happened their fourth day there. Harry had gotten up later since they had stayed up late the night before checking out secret passages at night (Draco thought the spooky atmosphere would make it more exciting). When he walked down his spiral staircase he saw Draco standing over something. The second he heard Harry though he straightened up. And the whole day Draco started acting moody. Harry wasn't sure if it was because they hadn't received an owl from the Minister yet or because of something else. Either way, Harry was determined to make Draco have a good time. The irony was that now Harry was feeling better after what happened with Ron, but now Draco needed cheering up. He just wished the blond would tell him what was wrong.

The morning of the fifth day there Harry got up early and fixed them both breakfast. When Draco trudged down his stairs, Harry was waiting in the now kitchen area that Draco had created with just his thoughts on their first day.

"Morning," Harry said.

Draco grunted and went to grab a butterbeer, which was something he had been wishing for consistently since the day before. Every time he entered the kitchen one seemed to appear.

"I made some breakfast," he said.

"I'm not hungry," Draco muttered.

"Draco, what's going on?" Harry asked, approaching him. "You've been like this since yesterday. Is it because the Minister hasn't replied yet?"

The blond jerked his head around to face him. "No, but that certainly doesn't help! Thank you, Potter," he drawled.

Clenching his jaw, Harry fought the urge to punch him. "You brought me here to cheer me up and I told you what happened with Ron. Now tell me what's going on with you."

"I don't feel like it!" Draco snapped.

"You never feel like talking! I always have to push so hard to get you to talk about anything!"

"I've told you plenty," Draco retorted. "You know everything about the vow and I've never told anyone that!"

Harry stared at him taken aback. Probably for his entire life no matter what has bothered him Draco never felt safe to confide in anyone. So he had to bury his emotions all the time. That must've been such a burden to carry around all the negative feelings his whole life. Despite that Draco was in the wrong, Harry understood that his upbringing made him this way. He had to show Draco he cared and ease him up a bit so maybe he would finally talk.

"Let's just forget about everything," Harry said finally.

Draco turned to face him slowly.

"Let's forget about Ron and the vow and whatever's bothering you. This vacation was supposed to be a cheerful one, right? So let's take advantage of everything they've got here."

For a minute Draco was silent. He finally responded which gave Harry a little hope. "What are you thinking?"

"I was looking at the map and one thing that I noticed they had was a Tour of Celestia Castle. It's down in the dungeon area and says, quote: _'This tour, while resort-like, will still give you a real feel of the rumors and things said to have happened here in this castle. You will feel like you are really walking in Celestia's footsteps_.' "

Draco snorted. "That doesn't sound that impressive."

"Well besides exploring the castle more it seems to be the most exciting thing. It's either that or taking a broom ride to the nearby city and exploring that. I figure this would be more fun. Besides, you can't say it's not impressive until you've actually given it a shot," Harry retorted firmly. "Now get off your bum and let's go!"

They made their way down to the dungeons. It was cold and dimly lit as they walked toward the center of the dungeon. They passed by small metal cells. Harry shivered.

"I used to fear getting captured by Voldemort just because of how long he'd keep me around torturing me or making me live in dank places like this, or worse. I'd rather die than be a prisoner."

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Where did that come from?"

Harry shrugged and gestured to the cells. "I'd hate to be trapped like an animal in one of these. I'd go crazy."

Draco snorted. "Yeah, I think anyone would."

He suddenly became quiet. Harry cleared his throat. He wanted Draco to open up more so he figured he would share something personal to show that he could confide in him.

"It kind of reminds me when I lived with my relatives. They put bars on my windows so I wouldn't escape."

"Bars? Like that would do any good for a wizard," Draco said, eyeing him.

"When you're underage it does."

Draco's expression changed and he nodded slowly. "That couldn't have been fun."

They stopped when they came to several dark tunnels. They picked one at random.

"Yeah, it wasn't," Harry said. He gazed up at the blond. There was definitely something bothering Draco. His expression had changed when Harry pointed out the cells. He wanted to know what it was, since he wouldn't talk about what was really bothering him from earlier.

"So…did you ever have to…you know…go to any dungeons with Voldemort?"

"No," Draco snorted quietly. "Surprisingly he didn't really have a dungeon. I guess it was too cliché. He would just deal with people right then and there. The good thing is that he rarely kept people around for long, even when torturing them, unless he needed them."

Harry knew what he meant. When Voldemort captured people to delve into their memories for information or to change things, that took time. Other than that he would just kill them once he had no use for them.

Draco was silent again. They suddenly stopped when they came to a small room at the end of the tunnel. It was dark and smelled strongly of potions. There were symbols on the walls and old stains on the floors.

"This is a dead end," Harry whispered. "Guess we should go back and take another tunnel."

"Fine. I'm choosing this time," Draco said.

As they walked quietly back, Harry could see Draco's eyebrows furrowed every couple minutes. He didn't push him. They took another tunnel and ended up in front of a large room with various colored walls.

"Whoa," Harry said. "What should we do now? Go back?"

"No," Draco said, reaching out to touch one of the walls. "I think I know what this is."

He stood back and uttered a spell. The wall shimmered and this time when Draco reached out toward it his hand went through.

"What is it?" Harry asked curiously.

"It's a time portal. You basically go through it to various time periods. Almost like looking into someone's memories but instead you're able to interact in that bubble of whatever memory or time period it is. It's like an illusion but one you can experience personally."

"Sounds interesting," Harry said. "Er, should we go in together?"

The blond glanced at him and slowly smirked. "You want to hold hands, Potter?"

Glaring, he grabbed Draco's arm and dragged him through the wall. Several hours later they returned exhausted but content. They had seen Celestia in person and watched a couple of her battles. Harry had never seen someone so creative. She wouldn't just use spells and charms, she would use a combination of things including other types of magic such as runes and elemental. It was older magic and not as powerful as a lot of spells used from the wand, but she also had a staff. The staff was very similar to a wand, but it was even more ancient. Before wands only very few wizards and witches could focus the magic from within enough to turn a simple piece of wood into a large staff. Many of them decorated their staffs with personal symbols. Staffs could wield even more magic than the wand, but it was less focused and even rare for most wizards to accomplish. Even in the present, wand-makers could rarely make anything large than the average wand. To attempt to create a staff with the present wand abilities was nearly impossible. Many had tried. Celestia was one of the few that had succeeded.

"I'm ready for bed," Harry said, slumping down.

Draco didn't respond at first. He went to sit next to him on the couch after grabbing a butterbeer. After he took a couple sips, he adjusted his position and glanced at him. Harry returned the gaze questioningly.

"You told me earlier about your relatives and how they made you feel trapped," he said softly. Harry nodded. "Well my parents made me feel trapped sometimes, mostly my father."

Draco hesitated again and took another sip. "Sometimes when he wanted to teach me a lesson he would take my wand away and seal me in a room where I had nothing to entertain myself. He said he did that so I could focus on why I was being punished."

"How long would he leave you in there?" Harry asked quietly.

Shrugging, Draco bent his leg up on the couch. "Sometimes for hours. It was never for a full day or anything, but he did it frequently enough that I thought about running away. Like you said down in the dungeons," he said turning to face him, "is how I felt. I'd rather run away than feel trapped or feel like one day he might just leave me in there for days. I could hardly stand it, especially when I was already afraid of Voldemort's return."

"I'm sorry," Harry said.

"Don't be," he said, turning away. "You've had worse."

They both sat there in silence for several minutes. Harry then turned to stare at Draco while he was looking straight ahead. He reached over and grasped the blond's hand in his. Draco turned in surprise.

"Thanks for sharing that," Harry said. "I know it's hard, especially when you're not used to having anyone to confide in."

Draco stared at him with a genuine gaze of relief. Very slowly Draco bent his fingers around Harry's hand. It was his way of showing thanks. Harry stared into his bright blue-gray eyes. He began to lean closer until they both heard a sound at the window. Draco turned and let go of Harry's hand. He stood up and walked toward the window. Harry followed and peered over his shoulder.

"It's a secure owl," Harry said.

Draco opened the window and the winged envelope fluttered in and perched itself on the top of the couch.

"It's got the Minister's seal," Draco said, his voice rising with hope.

Harry smiled and opened it. He read it aloud:

_Dear Harry, _

_I'm sorry it has taken a little while. I finally heard back from the Minister in Ireland. He has agreed to meet with you to hear out your reasoning behind wanting to see the wand. This is the best I can do, but I know you'll be able to present a good argument. If anyone can, you can. Considering your reputation, I think this is just a formal way of agreeing to let you see the wand. The Minister of Ireland just wants to meet you first. I have enclosed the paperwork necessary. It's very brief. Once you send it in you will hear back from the Minister to set up a date and time to meet. I made sure to tell them secure owls only as you are in an untraceable location. _

_Best of luck, _

_Kingsley_

"It sounds like a good start," Harry said.

Draco shrugged. "Yeah, but it doesn't state the Minister of Ireland will agree to let us look at the wand."

"How could they possibly say no? There's no harm to it. It's not like anyone else has had any luck so they might as well let us try."

"Ministers aren't always known for their rational sense," Draco drawled.

"Maybe not, but we'll convince them. Let's just get this paperwork over with now and send it out."

Over the next twenty minutes they both worked on filling out the paperwork together. It asked for their names, education and their purpose for wanting to meet with the Minister. They sent it by secure owl.

"Hopefully it won't take too long to hear back," Harry said.

"They better not," Draco said.

"Well we still have a little under a year so don't worry."

"That's not possible," he said, picking up the secure owl. "Didn't Minister Shacklebolt say anything else about helping in case this failed?"

"No," Harry said.

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What's this?"

"What?" Harry said, sitting up.

"There's a message after the letter. _P.s. I'm still looking into your inquiry about Cyprian. So far I'm not seeing any evidence of that. I will keep you posted. _What's he talking about?" Draco asked, glancing up at him.

"Oh. You know how I mentioned my fear that Cyprian's a Horcrux. I'm just having Kingsley look into it."

Draco's eyes widened. "Yeah, but you said it probably wasn't possible, right?"

"We were all unconscious with Slughorn for a while before we woke up. And Cyprian didn't wake up at all that whole time. I was worried he did something to him. After what happened, Cyprian just didn't seem right. He seemed sickly like how Slughorn appeared," Harry said, sighing. "I don't know. It seems farfetched and so far Kingsley hasn't found anything, but I just know Voldemort is always planning a step ahead. There has to be a way to foresee his end game so we can finally be on top of him. Otherwise we'll never be able to stop him permanently."

Sighing again, Harry took a sip of his drink and stared at the blue flames flickering from the fireplace. Draco stared at him for a minute until Harry caught his eye.

"What?"

Draco hesitated. "Didn't you say that you used to see into Voldemort's mind?"

"Well, yeah, but that was when my scar was working. Ever since destroying all his previous Horcruxes, namely the one inside of me, I haven't felt anything from my scar."

"But you still get premonitions, like before," Draco said.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What are you suggesting? That I try to force a premonition to see what Voldemort's up to?"

Draco shrugged. "It's worth a shot."

"First of all, I don't know how to force a premonition nor do I know how to focus it on Voldemort. And second of all, I've never had premonitions about the far-off future."

"There are potions that can help put you in a trance. I know seers learn to do it."

"Yeah but they practice over years," Harry said. "We don't have that kind of time."

"You don't have to shoot down everything I say, Potter!" Draco snapped. "It's worth a shot! If you can't do it, then you can't but I think we should try. If what you're saying about Voldemort is true, even if we help Cyprian or find out how to get that amulet out of him, he still might have another plan up his sleeve. At this rate it will be never ending and there's no telling at what point Voldemort will gain the upper hand and regain strength again."

"Kingsley would never let that happen," Harry said firmly.

Draco glared at him in annoyance.

"But I do agree with you. It's worth a shot. I can ask Hermione if she knows what potion would be best for me to take."

The blond seemed to relax a bit. He was definitely still on edge.

"So do you feel better?" Harry asked.

"About what? Voldemort?"

"No. About what was bothering you earlier. I was hoping to take it off your mind by doing the tour thing."

"Then why are you bringing it up?" Draco drawled.

Harry clenched his jaw. "Never mind," he muttered.

He got up off the couch and went into the kitchen. He felt like throwing something in frustration but instead grabbed a butterbeer and went up to his bed. He sat up against his headboard trying to calm himself down. Dealing with Draco was sometimes too irritating. It was so hard sometimes getting him to open up or to be positive about something. He had his good days and his bad. Harry too was stressed out thinking about Voldemort and what would happen if they couldn't break the vow. He didn't need Draco being an annoying prick on top of that. A little bit later he heard Draco coming up the stairs. The blond seemed to pause before walking into his bedroom. Harry didn't even glance up at him.

"Are you really going to throw a tantrum about this, Potter?"

"Stop calling me that!" Harry snapped. "And I'm not throwing a tantrum! You know what, just go away. I don't want to talk to you right now."

"What the hell is your problem?! If I don't want to talk, I don't have to!" Draco exclaimed as he clenched his fists.

Harry clenched his jaw and then shook his head. "You're unbelievable."

"Why? Because I don't want to share my _feelings_ all the time?!"

"No! Because you don't want to share anything!"

"I just did –"

"Yeah, I know that! But it takes you a long time to open up! I share with you everything about me and answer anything that you ask me," Harry said, staring at him firmly. "But you take so long to open up about anything and it's nice when you finally do but then you close right back up again, which, if you think about it, is completely ironic because it should be the other way around!"

Draco crossed his arms. "What's that mean?"

"It means that you're the one who tried to kill me! Not the other way around!" Harry blurted out angrily. "So I shouldn't trust you so easily but you're the one who seems to not trust me!"

He could tell he hit a nerve. Draco's jaw was clenched and he was glaring down at the ground. Harry turned away and shook his head. He didn't want to fight. He was too tired to fight. Draco whirled around on his heel and stomped out. Harry angrily placed his butterbeer on the bureau and exhaled loudly. It certainly wasn't turning out to be a great trip after all. Just then Draco stomped back in and tossed something at him. It fell on the bed. Harry glanced at it in confusion first before slowly picking it up.

"There! Happy?!" Draco exclaimed and stomped back out.

Harry opened up the secure owl and read it.

_Draco, _

_This has gone on long enough. You need to stop throwing a tantrum like a child. Accept your responsibility and come home. If you do that, your inheritance will be returned in full. Your father is very upset since I had to tell him what has been going on. He is furious that you would leave your family like this. He is unable to reduce his two-year sentence being in Zylon, which is just as bad as Azkaban even without the Dementors, being questioned and interrogated every day by those damn Aurors as they feed them slop! There is some good news, my son. The Ministry is allowing him to be able to return home for a day on your twentieth birthday next year. You know how important that is. You know what will happen if you don't come. You will die. Is that what you want? Is living your life freely like you want going to be worth such a short life? It isn't going to be bad at all! I discussed your fears about losing your wand and job with your father. He said there's no need to worry about that. As you know, you will go to work for Daphne's father and you can have your pick of the position that you would like best. Daphne is a beautiful and intelligent woman. She has grown up very nicely over the years. I know you haven't seen her in years but she is even more beautiful than before. _

_Your father and I have agreed that if you cooperate better and not fight us at every turn, which means after the ceremony if you behave and not continue to rebel and make the situation miserable for everyone, then you can also have some freedom to attend Quidditch games and take time off when you need it to do other frivolous things. You can even work at that trivial job you're at now on holidays if you want. We are being extremely lenient towards you Draco, despite your behavior. We are not the enemy. I understand you think you know what's best for you and you think that you want to have all this freedom but you will get bored of it eventually. Pretty soon you will want to settle down and have a family and not be running amuck doing random things. I promise you that this is for the best. Daphne and her family are very supportive and they don't mind things like Quidditch and other hobbies. You can have vacations. And Daphne is a very lenient woman. She won't mind tagging along or finding something else to do. Since this ceremony is inevitable, please come home and discuss this like an adult. I think that we have made compromises to ensure that you will be satisfied in the life we have prepared for you. _

_Contact me soon, _

_~Mother_

Harry stared at it for a minute. She was so formal with him. No wonder he didn't feel close with his family. Despite that they were trying to 'compromise' she was completely ignoring the fact that the one compromise Draco wants was what they were forcing him to do. Why not at least let him choose his own wife? Perhaps they were afraid that he would choose someone not pureblood or not Slytherin. Then he would be able to have a life separate from that and they didn't want him to escape that life. They wanted him to remember what family he came from and be a part of it. What kind of job would Draco be doing for Daphne's father? Was it illegal or something to do with supporting Voldemort or preparing for the next Dark Lord? A horrific thought crossed his mind. What if Lucius wanted Draco to become the next Dark Lord and take over Voldemort's spot? Or what if they were planning on freeing Voldemort from the confines of the Ministry and helping him gain strength again? Perhaps Draco's fear of Voldemort gaining strength wasn't too farfetched.

Slowly Harry got up and walked into Draco's room. The blond was lying on the bed clad in his comfy black pants, without a shirt. He had his hands beneath his head and was staring up at the ceiling until Harry entered. He glanced at him momentarily and then stared back at the ceiling.

"Do you understand now?" he drawled.

"Yeah," Harry said quietly. "Why were you afraid to tell me this? I mean, if your parents are bothering you, you know you can talk to me about it."

Draco lay silently for a second. "I wasn't afraid. I just didn't want to talk about it."

"I know. I wouldn't want to talk about it either but ignoring it doesn't make it go away."

"I'm aware of that, Potter!" He snapped. "You don't have to lecture me."

Harry bit his tongue and walked over to the bed. He sat down on it next to Draco who turned his head sideways to gaze at him.

"I'm sorry. I'm not trying to lecture you. I just mean that sometimes talking about it takes some of the burden off."

"It doesn't help if we don't have any way of stopping it."

"We do have hope," Harry said, scooting closer. "We finally have a lead on this hybrid plant-creature now so there's even more hope."

Draco snorted. "It's a long shot."

"Doesn't matter," Harry said.

Draco glanced at him and Harry stared into his face, marveling at his beauty even when he was upset. His skin was so smooth and ivory, like a porcelain doll. His long bangs fell over his face enough to make his eyes stand out and his cheek bones. His bright pretty blue-gray eyes, which appeared to have a silver hue in the moonlight, lured Harry closer. He lay down next to the blond on the bed with the letter still in hand.

"Okay. Worse case scenario," Harry said.

Turning his head, the blond gazed at him. Harry turned and gazed back.

"Let's say we don't find this creature, or the potion doesn't work. And you have to marry Daphne. After the ceremony is over, you can run away with me."

Snorting softly, Draco turned his head away. "That's not how it works. It's a life debt. I don't remember the vow word for word, but basically it was that by marrying her I, along with my family, would be bound to them forever. It's more than just marrying her and having a wedding ceremony. It's a ritualistic ceremony binding our lives together. So if I try leaving at any time against the vow, I'll die anyway."

A sinking feeling filled his gut and Harry tried not to let it show.

"That's despicable that they would do that to you," Harry said, staring at him. Draco just stared back silently. "So do you think your mum's lying about those 'compromises', if you could call them that?"

"No. But they only agreed on the compromises that satisfied _them_ not me," he said coldly.

Harry nodded slowly. He fiddled with the letter as he zoned out, thinking about other things he could do to try to break the vow. He felt Draco adjust his position next to him. Just as Harry turned to face him, Draco's lips touched his own. The blond had turned on his side, leaning on his elbow as he bent down to kiss him. Harry dropped the letter and raised a hand up to place it behind Draco's head. Their lips moved passionately together. Harry's fingers slid up Draco's scalp into his hair.

Their kiss broke softly for a second slowly and Harry opened his eyes. He briefly locked eyes with the blond before Draco rolled over on top of him and bent down again. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's shoulders as their lips connected. Draco's skin was warm and smooth beneath his touch. Their lips roved passionately together for some time before he felt Draco break away, hovering just above him. He grabbed Harry's chin, forcing his lips apart and seized his lips. At the same time he slid his tongue inside and Harry languidly slid his tongue against Draco's before entering his mouth. Harry was opening his mouth wider as their kisses became deeper and more demanding. He lightly grabbed Draco's hair as his fingers slid through. Draco groaned in the back of his throat and the sound caused warmth to spread to his groin.

Draco's hands trailed up Harry's thin, gray sweatpants toward his hip. The hand massaged his hip for a second before trailing to the back of his thigh. They both tilted their heads as their lips detached and came back together roughly. Harry's fingers trailed down Draco's bare back as the blond's fingers pushed beneath his sweatpants onto his bare thigh. Harry groaned through their kiss. He instinctively spread his legs wider making it easier for Draco to rest between them. That move seemed to affect Draco for he broke the kiss, rising up quickly and grabbed the end of Harry's shirt. He ripped it over his head and tossed it to the floor. Harry barely had time to react as Draco yanked his own pants down and then grabbed Harry's face and kissed him roughly. The blond began moving his body on top of Harry's in a rhythm as he kissed him, making Harry's arousal grow even more. The blond broke away and trailed his tongue down Harry's neck before kissing across his chest. Harry briefly opened his eyes to see Draco trailing his tongue across his arousal through his sweatpants before he slipped his hands beneath his sweatpants and pulled them down.

The second Harry's sweatpants were on the floor Draco wasted no time. He grabbed Harry's legs roughly, spreading them apart around his body as he pulled his own underwear down. He kept himself raised up as he bent down to kiss Harry while keeping a hand on the back of Harry's thigh. Draco yanked on Harry's boxers, pulling them down roughly and then bent Harry's knees while keeping his legs around him. He murmured the lubrication spell and tossed his wand to the floor. Draco exhaled breathlessly as he positioned himself, keeping a firm grip on Harry's thigh. His other hand rested just above Harry's head. Draco bent down to kiss him firmly and then he grabbed a hold of one of Harry's wrists and held it above his head. As Draco broke the kiss the hand on the thigh tightened and Draco thrust forward. Harry's hips rose with the movement and his head tilted back from the force. Harry gasped and then groaned, grateful that the lubrication made it much easier for Draco to enter so fast without much pain. The blond moaned and grunted as he pulled and thrust back in over and over. The hand on his thigh moved upward, gripping his rear tightly as he moved at a quick pace. Harry's bent knees shook with every thrust and he instinctively closed his legs around Draco's hips. He felt the blond's grip on his wrist tightening.

They both groaned loudly as Draco continued to thrust deeply. The hand on his rear disappeared and Draco then moved his bent legs up, gesturing for him to raise them up a bit. Harry raised his bent legs higher around Draco's body and just as he did the blond grip the headboard with both hands as he angled himself deeper. He suddenly thrust forward roughly and Harry's lips parted as he moaned breathlessly. He wrapped his legs around Draco's hips to keep them raised up higher as the blond thrust continuously, his moans becoming louder. Harry could barely keep his eyes open. His hands clenched the sheets beneath him as Draco rocked back and forth, thrusting into him passionately over and over.

Draco closed his eyes as an expression of pleasure crossed his features. That only made Harry's desire grow even more. He could feel his orgasm building so fast. Harry moaned, closing his eyes as Draco raised his legs a bit higher and thrust again and again. Harry's mouth parted open as his eyes shut. Harry reached a hand back above his head to grasp the end of the headboard as Draco thrust deeper.

Suddenly Draco grasped the headboard even tighter and thrust in quick hard motions over and over. Harry's voice rose as Draco's did as well. The blond's head was tilted back in pure ecstasy and his butt clenched tighter and tighter as he thrust. Harry's legs could barely stay wrapped around Draco from the force.

"Draco!" Harry shouted. "Uhhgg! UHHG! UGGHH!" Harry groaned with each thrust.

Harry's noises only seemed to make Draco's voice increase.

"UHH! UGGHH! Harry!" He cried out.

Draco thrust so hard that Harry's whole body shook from the motion. They both cried out louder and louder with their heads tilted back. Harry felt his orgasm burst from him and he heard Draco's loud cry of pleasure before he felt the blond's orgasm inside him. They both lay there with their heads tilted back for a minute while they came down from their orgasms. Harry's legs dropped back down to the bed. Draco was breathing heavily and was still gripping the headboard.

"Fuck!" Draco whispered breathlessly.

Harry opened his eyes. He too was breathing heavily and he could still feel the blond's member inside him. Draco's face was flushed and his body was covered in perspiration. If Harry wasn't so exhausted, he may have tried to go another round. With each passing day it seemed that Draco was more and more enticing. He wasn't sure if it was because he was getting to know the blond or if it was because he was finally accepting his feelings for him. Draco finally pulled out and collapsed next to him on the bed. They both lay there trying to catch their breath. Harry was too exhausted to move. Draco finally rolled across the bed to reach down and grab his wand so he could clean the bed and their bodies. Then he placed his wand on his nightstand and collapsed back down on his side.

"Are you going to stay here tonight?" Draco asked after a minute.

Harry had his arm lying across his forehead and nodded. "Unless you want to carry or levitate me to bed."

The blond snorted in amusement and then used his wand to put the sheets over them before setting it back down. Harry gazed at the blond who caught his eye.

"So do you feel better now?"

Draco smirked. "Are you offering to let me have my way with you anytime I feel down?"

Harry gave him a sarcastic look. He then smirked in amusement, sighed heavily and rolled over onto his side.

His heart was still racing as he stared out in the dark room. Feeling Draco's warmth next to him and hearing the sound of the blond's breathing both lulled him to sleep.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A month passed by with both Harry and Draco feeling nervous about meeting the Minister of Ireland. Every day seemed to pass by slowly with no response from them. They continued their work after returning from their trip. Both of them were less stressed about what upset them before, but now they were both stressed about the meeting that they dreaded would never take place. He hadn't heard anything more about Cyprian. He knew Kingsley had a lot on his plate though. He was an amazing Minister to take time out to look into one boy's case while at the same time traveling all across the country to make treaties or help other parts that had been ruined by the war.

They had several assignments from Dimitri which were relatively uneventful. It kept them busy, which kept them both distracted from their worries. That night as they got back from another assignment, they both collapsed on the couch in their PJs while eating dinner.

"So," Harry said, after a few minutes, "have you heard anything else from your family?"

Draco tensed and looked down. "No. But that's not surprising seeing as I didn't reply."

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

"Have you heard anything from Weasel?"

Sighing, Harry shook his head. "No." Not that he expected to.

They both fell into silence. Harry still had a hard time believing how drastically their relationship had changed in such a short amount of time. He still remembered when they had first bumped into each other on the job after graduation and how cold and annoying Draco had been. All that rage they had felt for each other was gone and replaced with passion.

Just then a noise came from the fireplace. Harry was grateful the fireplace wasn't on this time since he didn't have his wand with him. The secure owl flew threw and landed on the floor clumsily. It fluttered its wings and just sat there.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Damn charm! Convenient for getting to the destination but not delivering."

He swiped it up and opened it. Harry watched his expression carefully. Draco's eyes widened in awe.

"What is it?" Harry asked eagerly.

"It's from the Minister of Ireland!" he exclaimed. "We finally got a date to meet with them!"

Harry grinned. "I told you it would happen eventually."

"Yeah, about bloody time," Draco said. "Our meeting is in two days. They said to write back if that date doesn't work."

"Good thing our schedule is flexible," Harry said, chewing a mouthful of food.

Draco gave him a look. "Nice."

Harry just shrugged. "Maybe we should talk about what we're going to say."

"What's there to talk about? We go in, we tell them that no one else has had any luck so they've got nothing to lose. If we have to, we'll bring up the fact that we were the ones responsible for Voldemort's recent capture. That outta prove to them that we're one of their best shots at figuring out that damn mystery."

Harry smiled. "Glad you're confident."

Draco smirked and went back to eating his dinner. They were both much more relaxed after that. They both watched some Quidditch on the large picture that magically appeared above the fireplace after saying a simple spell. They both went to bed after that.

Harry lay in his bed for a while wondering if they were going to find out anything useful. He hoped so. Draco was quickly losing hope. Even he was beginning to wonder if they would be able to pull it off. He knew they had both overcome great odds recently and even in the past. Destroying Voldemort's Horcruxes proved nearly impossible but somehow he did it. Still, there was some magic, usually dark magic, that couldn't be broken. Voldemort was an example of that. The dark magic he used in creating the Horcruxes was irreversible. Even if he wanted to save himself from damnation and being stuck in limbo where he would be in agony since he was an incomplete soul, he couldn't. Although he was powerful, he was his own worst enemy. There was no way to heal his body or the pieces of his soul back together. One of the reasons an Unbreakable Vow was illegal was because there still was no exact reversible solution for it. Still they had to try.

The next couple of days were uneventful. They both stayed home and lounged around. Several make-out sessions had ensued with groping although they didn't have sex. They were both still exhausted from their recent assignment. They took their flying car to Ireland, which was a three hour flight, or drive, depending on how you looked at it. When they arrived there were Aurors standing out front guarding the entrance. They had to park the car and approach cautiously. Their wands were taken and they were escorted inside.

The building itself seemed very simple on the inside. There was a large empty lobby area and some doors in the back. There was also a symbol on the floor of an Irish phoenix which was apparently the Minister's logo. They were escorted onto the phoenix symbol and unexpectedly, with passwords said silently from the Aurors, the circular area the symbol was carved into sank into the floor. As they rose downward Harry was in awe at the sight. They were basically at the top of a ceiling as they came down to a much larger room with moving spiral staircases that led to various doors on various floors. They were only standing on a platform without any compartment around them. From the view up high they could see the large statue of Celestia with her robe flowing around her and her staff posed and ready. It was in the center of the real lobby area and practically as tall as the room. Harry remembered that Celestia was from Ireland.

Once they reached the ground they were escorted to toward the far spiral staircase. It rose them up toward a tall oak door. The Aurors said something through the doors and they opened. As the doors opened for them, the Aurors then backed off and went back down the spiral staircase. Draco and Harry exchanged uncertain glances. They both walked through the door and came to a room that was a combination between a meeting hall and a lounge. There were plush couches neatly situated with a large oak table in between seated on curved legs in the shape of dragon feet and talons. There were floating wisps of light that glided around the room looking like small bright stars glimmering past. On top of the table was a fancy tea contraption that could make a multitude of different kinds of teas. There was one large window to the back of the room and a portrait of Celestia hanging on the wall staring at them from across the room as they stood at the entrance. The carpet was a plum color and was extremely soft.

In front of them were five people seated on two of the three couches. On the far side of the table there was just a white plush chair. It was the only chair around the table while couches were on all the other sides. Harry and Draco stood there awkwardly not knowing what to do. One of the formally dressed men noticed them and gestured for them to come forward.

"Come in gentlemen and have a seat."

They both walked toward and empty couch and sat down. Harry could feel the eyes of the five people on them.

"You must be Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy," the man said, smiling. "We've been looking forward to meeting with you."

"Nice to meet you," Harry said.

"Pleasure," Draco said, nodding.

"Are you the Minister?" Harry asked.

He laughed. "Oh by Merlin's beard, no. I'm flattered you would think that. Let me introduce myself. I'm Alfred. I'm one of the Minister's assistants and these are fellow Aurors – well I should say the Minister's guards."

"Oh," Harry said, nodding.

"The Minister will be here shortly," Alfred said. "Tell me, is it true you both aided in the Dark Lord's recent capture?"

They both glanced at one another. So much for their wild card.

"Er, yeah," Harry said. "Of course the Minister of England and the Aurors there helped as well."

"Naturally, yes, but from what I hear you two were the brains behind it," Alfred said with a grin. "That's very impressive. I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Potter. All your amazing feats. Word travels."

Harry smiled awkwardly. He wasn't sure what to say. Draco glanced at him briefly and raised an eyebrow. Harry just gave him a look.

"Why, Alfred, you haven't even offered them tea."

Harry gazed up to see a young woman dressed in elegant silver robes standing before them. The Irish phoenix crest was glimmering by her left shoulder. She had chocolate brown eyes and golden-blonde hair that was elegantly twirled up into a bun with several glimmering small crystal barrettes surrounding the bun. All of the men rose from their seats.

"Minister," Alfred greeted with a slight bow. "I'm so sorry. I completely forgot about the tea."

She smiled brightly. "No worries." She then glanced at Draco and then her gaze settled on Harry. Her eyes were warm and gentle, but she also held herself tall and firm.

Harry and Draco quickly stood up.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Minister," Harry said quickly.

"Likewise," she said, smiling. She walked gracefully over to them and sat in the white plush chair that was next to their couch. She set her hands down in her lap and then gestured to the tea.

"Would you both care for some?"

"I'd love some," Harry said.

"Yes, please," Draco said at about the same time.

They both chose a flavor and she poured tea for them in small white teacups with gold lining. They had the phoenix emblem on them in gold as well. Then she poured herself a cup. The others were suddenly quietly, all watching and waiting patiently for the Minister to speak. She took a sip of her tea and placed her hands back in her lap.

"Now let's get down to business. You gentlemen wanted to request to see Nikia's wand, correct?"

"Yes, er, assuming that's the name of the witch who disappeared," Harry said.

The Minister smiled. "It is. It is customary to have a formal meeting for this type of request. We received your paperwork but I would like to hear from both of you your reasoning for wanting to see the wand."

Harry glanced at Draco who gestured for him to start. He cleared his throat.

"Well, I'm not sure if you're aware, but Draco and I work for Hellebore."

The others made sounds of interest. The Minister nodded. "Kingsley did mention that to me, yes. So you both have become very familiar with all kinds of plant creatures, I imagine."

"You have no idea," Draco murmured, taking a sip of his tea.

The Minister raised both eyebrows gently. "Really, Mr. Malfoy? I'd love to hear more."

Draco flushed and set his tea cup down. "Oh, well, Harry and I managed to find a rescue a rare Blue Snargaluff recently."

The others made sounds of awe around the table and began to whisper. The Minister didn't seem bothered by it. She was staring at them with calm interest.

"My, that's quite a find."

"Yes, well, Draco and I have gotten really good at finding rare creatures," Harry said. "There's one creature in particularly we found recently, but haven't told our boss yet."

The others leaned in curiously.

"Do tell," she said with a smile.

"An Onyx Dragon," Harry replied.

"Blimey!" Alfred exclaimed. "I thought they were just a myth."

"They aren't," Draco said. "And neither is the white flame. It's only the males that blow that color flame though."

"Fascinating," the Minister said. "So is this part of your adventure, finding out about this mysterious plant-creature?"

Harry glanced at Draco briefly. They exchanged a knowing look. They had to be calm so as not to alert the Aurors there that they were hiding something or appear suspicious in any way, but they also couldn't let anything slip about the vow they were trying to break.

"Well actually Dimitri, our boss there, is doing amazing research on all kinds of plants. He's affiliated with St. Mungo's and St. Menge's and helps them and their medi-witches and wizards find cures for things or new medicines to help. We collect samples for him and even sometimes rescue endangered species to take back where they're given their own beautiful home there," Harry explained.

Draco nodded. "Right. We were thinking that a plant-creature that powerful might have useful properties that could come in handy for cures and other ailments."

"I see," she said, blinking. She sat up straight. "That's very noble of you two. I have to say it would be nice to have this particular mystery solved. No one will go near the woods that she was found in. The place is overgrown with many kinds of creatures inhabiting it now. The area itself is beautiful and there's a really amazing private school just miles away from it. People who used to live in that area would go to the school but no one wants to live anywhere near the woods anymore. Needless to say that school isn't doing as well anymore. They have great programs there, specialties that a lot of schools don't have, at least not as in depth. It would be a shame to see the school close down."

"Is that the Acquestria Academy?" Draco asked.

The Minister nodded. "Yes. I went to that school here."

"Excuse me," Harry said. "But I didn't realize they knew the area that she was found. I thought they found her wand in the North Sea."

"Yes, they did," she said. "We kept it quiet in terms of leaking out worldwide. The people who knew her here knew she was journeying into those woods to study a nest of Flitterbees, which as you know are very tiny magical insects that only come out once every couple decades. They're very shy. The people in that area knew what happened once word got around. One nearby family heard her screams. And her friends realized she was missing shortly after that."

"If I may interject," Alfred said. "As much as I do believe it would be nice to solve this, the reason it's protected so heavily is because it's very fragile. Any evidence left on it is barely preserved and could easily be destroyed."

"That's true, Alfred, but the evidence that is or is not there does no good when it's left alone either," the Minister said.

Alfred opened his mouth and then shut it. She then turned back to them.

"I will say though that it is a hard decision to make. Nikia was from Scotland. The reason her wand is here is because one of our Aurors here found it so we just agreed with the Minister of Scotland to keep it safe here. Since Nikia is from Scotland, however, the Minister there might get upset that we let someone in to disrupt it. I would have to present good enough arguments to appease him."

"Well, Minister, there is one more reason," Draco said quietly.

Harry glanced at him in surprise. They had discussed what they were going to say but Harry had run out of ideas. Draco obviously had something up his sleeve.

"Please, call me Skyla," she said with a smile.

Draco blinked then nodded. The Minister and all the Aurors were riveted on Draco.

"Skyla, we have a friend in the hospital right now. He's very sick and they have no idea what's wrong with him. Voldemort did something to him with some ancient pendant. They also can't figure out how to get the pendant from out of Voldemort's body, which is keeping him alive," Draco explained as their eyes widened. All except for the Minister's. She stared at Draco in earnest but her features remained calm.

Harry inwardly smiled. It was a brilliant move to use Cyprian. He felt rather bad because Cyprian really was in dire need. Here they were trying to find this plant-creature for selfish reasons while Cyprian lay weak and sick. Perhaps this plant-creature could help Cyprian as well. That was definitely another reason to find it.

"That's horrible," Alfred said quietly.

"Indeed," Skyla said. "Well that is a sound argument. If there is a chance to stop Voldemort once and for all, we must take it. Even if it's a long shot."

She smiled at them and nodded. "I'm going to Owl the Minister of Scotland and let him know our arguments. Please make yourselves comfortable. I will let you know what his decision is hopefully in an hour or so. Feel free to explore the building."

With that she swiftly rose out of her chair and walked to the door in back. She disappeared inside and all at once all the Aurors began talking.

"Is it true that the Dark Lord is clinging on for life?"

"What kind of pendant is he wearing?"

"I do hope this plant-creature, if found, has many useful properties."

Harry and Draco just sat there quietly and finished their tea as they discussed things amongst themselves. After a few minutes they snuck away and decided to explore the building.

Draco exhaled loudly. "I'm glad to be out of there."

Harry smiled. "Yeah. Skyla seems really nice. I think we've got a good shot. That was brilliant by the way."

Smirking, the blond raked his hand through his hair. "I know."

"I hope Cyprian will be all right."

"I'm sure Granger will find a cure or something and become famous for it. Besides, what could Slughorn have done to him? Think about it. He was weak and he wasn't quite Voldemort yet. I'm sure it's not as bad as you think."

Harry sighed. "I hope not. You think the Minister of Scotland will agree to let us see it?"

"He better," Draco said. "Otherwise we'll have to break the law, sneak in there and become enemies of the Ministry."

"Yeah that sounds like a great plan that won't backfire on us."

They both discovered a staircase leading to the top by the ceiling where there was a door. When they walked inside it was like a museum with pedestals of various artifacts, statues, moving pictures among other things. The large window on the ceiling allowed the rays of sun to shine through.

"If they do let us see it, I hope we can figure it out," Draco said. "I'd hate to disappoint them."

Harry smiled. "Yeah. Now you know how I've felt my whole life, with the whole world depending on me defeating Voldemort. And he's still not gone."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Come on, you've killed him several times. It's not your fault it won't stick."

Laughing, Harry shrugged. "I guess you're right."

They both walked around in a content silence.

"Hey! This is Celenia's staff!" Draco exclaimed.

Harry walked over to him and stared at the long white oak staff.

"Wow. Do you think it still works?"

"I doubt it. Like I said, staffs are harder to control than wands so usually the witch or wizard that creates them is the only one who can use it," Draco said.

They both stared at it for a minute. Just then they heard the door open. They turned to see one of the Aurors enter.

"The Minister of Scotland has made his decision. You can come back."

"That was fast," Draco whispered. "Is that good or bad?"

"I have no idea," Harry replied.

They both glanced at one another briefly and then followed the Auror out.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS:**

**kistenbabe**: Awww, you're so sweet! I'm so glad you're liking this more and more. I'm glad you're still entertained. Sometimes it's hard to still be impressed with stories (even from the author's POV) after the build-up to the romance has come to pass. So I'm glad your interest is still there. =) Lol! Suck dishwater? I've never heard that expression before, haha! Yes, they are perfect for each other. Well you will just have to wait to see what happens with the vow and everything. I know it's torture right now, but hopefully it will all be worth the wait. Thanks again! =) I will update asap!

**MidnightShadeux**: Awww, thanks so much! I'm sooo happy to hear it's one of your favorites! And I'm glad to hear that the relationship seems in character. Sometimes it's hard with these two, but my goal is always to make it as believable as possible. That means their relationship can't be perfect all the time, unfortunately. I'm glad the passion and chemistry feel real to you too. I try to keep it real. Of course it's nice to have hot scenes but I also want it to represent how they keep growing as a couple and becoming closer. I'm so glad you like the adventure element! To me just having romance is too boring, lol! And I also can't live without humor either. I like light-hearted things, especially if there's a lot of suspense or some dark elements to a story. It's nice to have the light-hearted moments to look forward to. Ahhhh yes, you will just have to see what happens in regards to their relationship and everything with Ron. LOL! Yeah that's so true! Harry could be dating Voldie. Yuck! =) I will update soon!

**BeLLe ELLe PoTTer:** Awww, thanks soooo much! I'm so happy this is one of your favorite stories. I have to admit, it's one of my favorites. I think I'm enjoying writing it more than Captivation. It feels more real to me, or maybe that's just because it's years later and I've (hopefully) improved in my writing. I'm so glad this story is still keeping you interested. I will update asap! =)

**HPmeghan7474**** (as guest):** Haha, yep that's just like Draco to dive in without thinking. Although…that's like Harry too, lol! They both can be impulsive. Yep! Their relationship will continue to progress! I'm glad it still feels real to you and that it's still keeping your interest. =) Awww I'm so glad you like the banter! I love writing the banter because it's the light-hearted moments you look forward to. I will update asap!

**Abeham**: Awww, thanks! =) I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Awwwwwwwwwww you're so sweet! I try to be creative and often times my plots are all over the place because there are just so many things I want to do with a story, lol! So I'm glad it's not too crazy to you. In terms of Draco's POV I did do that once before when he was captured by Voldie. I will take your request into consideration and see if I can do it again in the future, if it fits. I normally just do Harry's POV but if it works for the chapter I can do it. =) I'm really glad you feel the relationship is progressing in a believable manner and pace. Their relationship will continue to grow. Not just the passion, but like you said, the emotional development. Thanks again! I will update asap!

**Black Nether****:** Awwww, thanks! =) Yay! I'm so glad you like it! I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Hehehehe, yes, you will have to see about those magical plant leaves. Yes, finally a new development instead of just drama, right? =) I will update asap!


	25. The Wand of the Witch, Part 2

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 24: The Wand of the Witch, Part 2**

When they both walked back into the room, Harry saw Skyla seated back in her chair. She gestured for them to sit down.

"The Minister of Scotland is on his way. He will make his decision then."

Harry and Draco exchanged nervous looks. She rubbed out the wrinkles in her robe and then calmly looked back over at them. Harry waved his wand over his tea to warm it up. Draco did the same thing and then awkwardly looked down at the table.

"Harry, do you mind if I ask you a strategic question?"

He gazed at Skyla in surprise. "Oh, uh, sure."

Skyla nodded. "You see, I've been trying to figure out the best approach to prevent another war. Some Death Eaters have been executed, but those were the only ones in your area. There are Voldemort-supporters all over the United Kingdom, maybe even the world."

Harry's heart sank. "Oh, right. Have they been causing any issues?"

Draco gazed at her nervously.

Skyla gazed out ahead. "They've been quiet ever since his defeat, but I don't doubt that someone will try to take his place eventually. Those that weren't quite as deranged or ruthless as Voldemort, but who still crave power and dominance, may find his captivity to be a convenience for them to gather followers."

Harry made sure not to look at Draco when she said that. It was one of his fears that Draco's family was planning on having Draco take Voldemort's place while they were unable to do anything. He knew nothing about the Greengrass family so he had no idea how crazy they were. It was safe to say if they were close friends with the Malfoys, they were probably just as bad.

"I know your Minister, Kingsley, has a treaty with the giants. He wasn't sure trying to get the remaining vampires on our side was a good idea. They don't really care for us. I think it was smart of Kingsley to make a treaty with the Merpeople as well so they could guard the new building Zylon. However, I don't think that those two treaties are enough. What is your opinion on a strategy or alliance that might protect everyone from Voldemort?"

He swallowed nervously as her big brown eyes gazed into his. He sat there for several seconds wracking his brain. Any other time he would have felt like an idiot. People always expected too much of him, especially when he was younger. He wasn't the smartest or even the bravest or the most magically talented. He was just the only one who stood his ground against Voldemort. After everything he had been through over the years, including the time with Draco, he learned more about himself and his magic. If it hadn't been for one meeting in particular, he wouldn't have been able to give her an answer, but this time he could.

"I do have an idea," Harry said.

She blinked and raised her head slightly in anticipation. Harry felt extremely flattered that the Minister of Ireland would even ask for his opinion on such a serious matter.

"I believe the centaurs would make a great alliance."

Draco gazed at him in surprise as did Skyla.

"Really? Why is that?"

"I have come to know them better recently and their leader is just – she's amazing," he said, struggling to explain. "She has this ability to read people just by staring into their eyes. And there are a huge number of them. Maybe not in areas like before because a lot went into hiding when the last war happened, but me and Draco just met a clan recently."

Skyla glanced at Draco who nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it was pretty incredible," Draco said. "They seem very strong and able to defend themselves."

"Not only that, but centaurs have the ability to become one with nature," Harry said, remembering both his studies and then seeing it up close in personal with Sirennia. She was as white as the tree affected by moonstones. "They're good at hiding and would be able to keep an eye on creatures and places that we may not be able to."

Skyla smiled. "You know, Harry, I can understand how you've survived the ordeals you have. People underestimate you. I think that's a brilliant idea. Any other Voldemort-supporters out there will be looking for dark creatures like the vampires. The problem with dark creatures is that they're hard to control and have no loyalty. Take Dementors for example. The previous Ministers thought they would be great at guarding Azkaban because people feared them so, including those feared by others. The Dementors have no loyalty, however, and were easily swayed by Voldemort to also do his bidding. They have also taken the lives of innocent people. I don't believe anyone would think about merpeople or centaurs as being great allies because, like you, they are underestimated."

Flushing, Harry smiled. "Thanks."

"Minister," one of the Aurors said.

Skyla glanced at them and then gazed back at Harry and Draco. "Excuse me."

She disappeared beyond the doorway and once she was gone Draco sighed heavily.

"This seems way more complicated than it should be."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "It's almost over."

He didn't notice Draco watching him as he stared down at his tea cup watching the steam rise.

"Are you still brooding?" Draco asked finally.

Blinking out of his daze, Harry glanced up at him. Draco was staring at him with furrowed eyebrows. The blond's eyes were intently searching his.

"Er, what do you mean?"

Draco's eyes narrowed. "I'm not stupid. I know you're still letting that whole thing with Weasley get to you."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "How can I not? It was the worst fight we've had. He may never speak to me again."

"Good riddance."

"Draco, stop," Harry said, clenching his tea cup. "I know you don't like Ron –"

"I've never liked him and never will."

"Yeah well I do," Harry hissed quietly. "I don't want to lose one of my best friends."

"If he can't accept you –"

"He can't accept _you_," Harry retorted.

Draco glared. "Whatever! If he can't get over the fact that we're partners," Draco began and Harry gave him a look, "and dating," he added, "then he's not a good friend."

"You say that now, but imagine if we had dated back at Hogwarts. What would _your_ friends think?"

"Obviously I wouldn't have given you the time of day," Draco drawled.

Harry pursed his lips. "Yeah well I wouldn't have given you the time of day."

The sound of a door opening caused them both to break eye contact. An Auror walked in followed by another wizard dressed in ridiculously expensive robes. He was wearing dark blue pants made out of Riventine silk. Riventine was a type of magical spider that only lived in cold climates and was a deep ocean blue color with white spots on its legs. It was about the size of a rat and could scurry faster than any insect so it was hard to catch. Its webs were strong and had magical abilities, mainly the ability to paralyze its prey if it got too close. Its favorite food were gnomes and blast-ended shrewts, but it wasn't that picky when it came to whatever it caught in its web. Its silk was not only soft (though not as soft as Demiguise hair) but it had magical properties so the clothes never wore out. It wasn't surprising a Minister would wear them under his robes. The magical abilities of the Riventine probably included defense mechanisms like paralyzing those who got too close. Plus its webs were strong enough to deflect simple hexes and curses so the Minister was probably protected from those as well.

Over the dark blue pants and shirt he wore a long shimmering silver robe that flared out at the bottom so when he walked it billowed behind him. It was clasped together with a dragon-scaled, silver broach in the shape of a phoenix. The man looked older than Kingsley with his short white beard and unsettling gray-blue eyes. The hair on his head was longer, reaching to the end of his neck. There were at least three Aurors that accompanied him. After he entered, from behind, Skyla emerged looking calm and humble.

"You must be Harry Potter," the Minister said, taking no notice of Draco.

He walked over and held out his hand. Harry stood up and shook it awkwardly.

"Yes, sir."

The man smiled slightly. "My name is Minister Quazon, but you can call me Irvin, Mr. Potter."

"Er, nice to meet you Mr. – er, Irvin."

Irvin pulled his hand away and then gestured for him to sit back down. Draco hadn't even bothered to stand up to greet him. There was a look of annoyance on his face. Irvin didn't seem too keen on Draco being there either. Harry had a feeling it was because Draco was an ex-Death Eater.

All the Aurors summoned chairs to sit around Irvin for protection. Skyla sat back down in her chair and warmed her tea before taking a sip.

"Now, Mr. Potter –"

"Call me Harry," he said quickly.

Irvin gave him a lop-sided smile. "Of course, Harry. Skyla has been telling me your proposition as well as the interesting adventures you've had recently. This is all for a sick friend?"

"Well of course he's the main reason, but we want to solve this mystery for several reasons," Harry said, wiping his hands on his jeans. "I'm sure you know we work for Hellebore. And one of my good friends is in an advanced Medi-witch program – she's quite brilliant. Anyway, we were thinking that a creature of this significance might be extremely important for future cures or potions of any kind, including protections."

Irvin rubbed his beard. "Ah yes, people would feel safer with newer protections being discovered, what with Lord Voldemort still alive."

Harry paused. "Yes, sir. I'm not sure if this creature will do us any good, but I figure it can't hurt."

"Hmm, yes, I see," he mumbled, taking a sip of his tea. "There is one concern of mine and that is, of course, damaging the evidence. We need to make sure that if you can't figure out anything from the wand, that it's not damaged in the process so that it may be preserved for a future time when it can be discovered."

Harry nodded. "Of course. We wouldn't even need to touch the wand with our bare hands."

Irvin's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

Harry glanced at Draco who was staring at Irvin trying to contain a look of contempt. Irvin's eyes strayed to glance at Draco, narrowed slightly, and then moved back to Harry in less than a few seconds. Harry cleared his throat.

"On our travels, we discovered a plant that can reveal the unseen. We would like to try it on the wand to see if any clues are revealed."

Irvin glanced at Skyla who looked intrigued. They hadn't mentioned the leaves to her. "Well that sounds reasonable. What do you think, Sky?"

She smiled. "Yes, I agree."

Irvin clapped his hands together and grinned. "Then let's do it!"

He immediately stood up and his Aurors jumped up to follow suit. Skyla calmly rose and began heading toward the back door of the room where they had come from. Harry and Draco stood up and followed them through the door and into a long carpeted hallway. There were paintings of past Ministers hanging on the walls watching them and whispering. There was a main chandelier in each hallway as well as brightly glowing lamps on the walls. They were charmed to turn on when people entered the room and turn off when they left.

When they got to the end of the next hallway they stopped when they came to a lamp. Since they all looked the same, it was impossible to know that this one was unusual. Skyla pressed her hand on it and closed her eyes. It was a mind password. One she had to think of specifically and charmed to react with the spell cast on the lamp. The second she opened her eyes again the lamp turned off and sunk into the wall. Then part of the wall moved aside to reveal a large stone staircase leading up. They all entered except for two Aurors who stayed at the bottom of the stairs to make sure they weren't followed (although the building was highly secured but with Voldemort still alive and potential supporters still out there planning some type of revenge, they couldn't be too careful).

"You know I've wanted to meet you for a long while," Irvin said as they walked up the narrow, never-ending staircase. "Ever since you came to the wizard world and started at Hogwarts. Of course we've heard about things that happened there at Hogwarts while you were there."

Harry nodded politely. He wasn't sure what to say. Draco was purposefully looking away as though not offended Irvin was ignoring him. While Irvin turned around to look ahead as he talked, Harry snuck his hand out and grasped Draco's. The blond turned to him in surprise, realizing that everyone was ahead of them. Harry squeezed his hand for a second before letting go. They reached the top of the staircase where there was a bronze door. It was very heavily protected with wards. Once they were removed they were all able to go inside. It was a dome-shaped room with a ton of square-shaped shelves each with objects sealed inside a translucent protective casing. In the center of the room there was a symbol on the floor much like in the entrance lobby. Skyla approached it and pressed her hand against it. Suddenly the phoenix's wings bent inward as it flapping them and as its body turned the floor opened and a pedestal rose up. It was a beautiful ivory-colored marble pedestal. On the very top of it was the wand. It was sitting inside a translucent casing just like the other objects.

"We hid it here in the floor since it's still a mystery, unlike all these artifacts," Skyla said, gesturing around them. "Most of these are just here for safety reasons. Some of them can do nasty things if in the wrong hands, although they have been deactivated, and others are just momentos of our past."

"Like Celestia's wand," Harry said.

Skyla smiled. "Exactly." She then waved her wand over the translucent casing and it vanished. She stepped away and gestured for them to approach. Harry swallowed nervously and gazed awkwardly at Draco who ran a finger beneath the collar of his shirt. He was just as nervous. If they did anything wrong, there would be serious consequences.

They both approached as everyone watched them with curiosity and wonder. Draco took out the Mystic plant leaves. They both had agreed to try a couple in case it didn't work the first time (or at all). They didn't want to waste all the leaves of the plant. Three should've been enough. They only had five total. Draco held them over the wand and Harry murmured a spell. As they began to slowly fall toward the wand they began to grind up into little bits turning into powder as they fell on top of the wand. Then they both waited.

Draco exhaled nervously. "What if it doesn't do anything?" he whispered.

"Well then we make a run for it," Harry whispered back.

Draco gave him a look and Harry grinned. Just then one of the Aurors gasped. They both looked at the wand to see the Mystic leaf powder now swirling around it. The wand was lifted up into the air. The wand was turned till the tip was pointing upward. Suddenly the powder was sucked into the tip of the wand. The wand fell back down on the pedestal. Harry held his breath. The tip of the wand glowed and something shot out of it. Straight from the tip was a strange purple piece of plant. It was very small. It drifted to the floor and Harry carefully bent down to pick it up when Skyla suddenly stopped him.

"Allow me," she said, waving her wand. A translucent casing came around the plant piece and she floated it over to him.

"Thanks," Harry said.

"What in the world does it mean?" Irvin asked.

"Er, no clue. We're going to have to do some research," Harry said.

Irvin sighed. "I guess it was too much to hope that the mystery would be solved here and now. Well, at least you've found a clue. I want you both to know that if you do figure out the mystery behind this creature and even capture it, you will be greatly rewarded. Contact immediately, Sky, as soon as you know anything."

"Of course," she said, smiling.

Irvin then nodded to Harry and Draco. "Good luck then."

Irvin and his fellow Aurors disappeared back down the staircase. Skyla put a hand on their shoulders.

"I'm sure you two can figure out what this means. I have faith in you."

She smiled and then waved her wand so the pedestal and the wand sunk back down into the floor. Then she led them back down the stairs and back into the room they met her in.

She held out her hand and shook Harry's then Draco's. "I wish you both the best of luck on your journey."

Then with a swish of her robe, she disappeared back through the door after giving them one last smile.

"Yeah, no pressure," Draco grumbled.

"Hey, there's a lot at stake," Harry whispered, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We'll figure it out."

"Where do we even start?" Draco asked.

"We start with libraries and research every kind of purple plant out there."

Draco sighed heavily. They both headed back out and flew back home. Once they got there they both were starving and made some food. Harry floated the encased clue out to the living room and stared at it while he ate.

"Is the plant speaking to you or something?" Draco drawled in amusement.

Harry glared. "I'm just thinking."

Draco snorted. "That's not helping."

"Well neither is your talking."

The blond rolled his eyes. "I'm going to check the hidden library and do something useful."

"Yeah, for once," Harry mumbled.

Draco stopped mid-step. "What was that, Potter?" he drawled.

"I said good luck."

The blond's eyes narrowed for a second before he disappeared up the stairs. Harry sighed heavily and stared up at the ceiling. It wasn't much of a clue to go on but it was all they had. They only had 10 months to break the vow, which didn't seem like a lot of time. After a few minutes, Harry went upstairs to join Draco. He found the blond sitting in one of the plush chairs flipping through a book with his wand. Harry rolled his eyes at the sight. He couldn't even use his hands to do something simple like that. Draco turned when he heard Harry approach.

"Any luck?"

Draco snorted. "That would be too easy."

He slammed the book shut and tossed it on the floor. Harry picked up another Herbology book and began flipping through the pages looking for anything about purple plants or leaves.

"Do you really think we'll be able to pull this off?" Draco asked quietly.

Turning, Harry glanced at him to see him staring down at a book. Harry's shoulders slumped.

"Honestly, I don't know but I think if we can find a Blue Snargaluff, we can find this creature."

"Yeah, maybe eventually but what about in less than a year!?" Draco snapped throwing another book on the floor roughly.

"We haven't even begun to search for it, Draco. We found the Onyx Dragon – "

"The Onyx Dragon is a _known_ species, Potter! This creature is a complete mystery! No one knows anything! There's been no sightings since that witch disappeared!"

"Hey! People thought the Onyx Dragon was a myth because it hadn't been supposedly sighted in a long time and there wasn't a lot of concrete evidence on it! So stop giving up before we've even tried!" Harry snapped.

Draco pursed his lips and then jumped out of his chair. He stomped toward the door.

"I'm going to bed!" he snapped.

He disappeared out the door and Harry sighed irritably. He rubbed his eyes. He was just as frustrated as Draco. He had an idea of what the blond was going through, that hopeless feeling. Harry had experienced that often when going up against Voldemort. Whenever the blond became frustrated he only made the situation worse. He became much more stubborn and negative. It was hard for him to continuously try to give Draco hope when even he had doubts they could break the vow.

After a couple of hours of skimming through a few books, Harry decided it was time to call it a night. So far there was no mention of any purple plant except plants that had been manipulated by spells, but most of those plants turned into vicious monsters as well as a variety of colors. Perhaps they had to go to a better source. They worked for a Herbology company. It was time to see if they truly were experts on the subject.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The next morning Harry woke up early. Since Draco had been in a bad mood the night before, Harry didn't want to bother him. He also didn't want to get his hopes up. So he quickly got dressed and took off to Hellebore by himself. Not many people were there that early, but he had a feeling one person in particular would be. Harry knocked on Dimitri's door. There was no answer. He then went to one of the offices and poked his head in to find Malik. The other boy's light blue eyes locked onto him and he ran a hair through his dark brown hair.

"Harry, what brings you here so early?"

"Hey Malik, I was just stopping by to see Dimitri. Do you know where he is?"

"Probably upstairs in the garden," Malik said.

"Oh, thanks," Harry said, beginning to turn around.

"Aw, come on, Harry," Malik said. "I've been waiting for you to visit me to see what I do. Can't you stay a minute?"

"Er, sure," he said, walking over.

Malik grinned. "Excellent. I'm working on an interview to tell The Tell-Tale Chronicles next week. It's about that volume you're working on. They always want the scoop ahead of time before it's released. Anyway, I'd like your opinion on it."

"Oh, er, sure but I'm not exactly the best person for this," Harry said, taking the piece of parchment.

Malik just shrugged and put his hands behind his head. "Give it a whirl."

Harry read through the article and raised his eyebrows at the end. He certainly had a flare for exaggeration. He made it seem like he and Draco and the others were practically fighting three-headed Snappers (vicious, carnivorous plants the size of pine trees).

"It's good," he said. "I don't know if it's as exciting as that though."

"You have to put a good spin on it for the readers. It's what the interviewers are going to do anyway," Malik said with a grin. "I have to go feed the Blue Snargaluff now anyway, you want me to take you up there?"

"Sure," Harry said.

Malik stood up and walked beside him as they went to the elevator.

"So how's everything going, you know, after your friend got upset?"

Harry blinked. "Oh, er, it's fine. I mean he just has to cool down."

"I don't know what his problem is," Malik said, "but he should get over it."

Harry smiled. "I agree. So what's new with you?"

"Nothin'," he said. "I don't get enough excitement sometimes," he said, winking.

Harry flushed. He hoped Malik wasn't flirting with him. Biting his lip, Harry cleared his throat. "Er, Malik, I have something to tell you, but I don't want you telling the others. At least not yet."

Malik raised his eyebrows. "Really? All right. What's the secret?"

"Er, well, you know me and Draco have been partners for a while, right?"

"Yeah, you two are still going to be partners, right?"

"Oh, yeah, we are. It's just…we're sort of, you know….," Harry trailed off, "more than that."

Malik's eyebrows rose up even higher as his eyes widened. "No way! Seriously?!"

Harry nodded awkwardly.

He grinned, putting his hands behind his head again as he rested up against the wall. "I guess I can see that. You two make a hot couple. Say, is that part of the reason your friend's pissed off? Is he jealous cuz he wants to be with you or somethin'?"

Harry burst into laughter. "No, nothing like that. He just, er, doesn't approve of Draco. We went to school with Draco back at Hogwarts and we didn't exactly get along back then."

They got off the elevator and started walking down the long glassed in hallway. The morning sun shone in brightly.

"Ah, I see," Malik said. He reached over to pat his back. "No sweat, mate. I won't tell anyone."

Harry smiled. "Thanks."

"So why'd you decide to tell me now?"

"Er, well," Harry started, rubbing the back of his head. "I wasn't sure if you were hitting on me or not."

Malik laughed. "Oh, I see. I flirt with pretty much anyone. Not that I don't like you or find you attractive, but I'm not into guys. I just like to be flirtatious and sometimes cocky. Some people don't mind it but some people do."

"Oh," Harry said, nodding. "Well thanks for understanding."

Malik grinned. He opened the door once they approached it and they stepped inside. Dimitri was in the garden area looking at some of the creatures. While he was busy collecting data, Harry watched Malik feed the Blue Snargaluff. The creature knew it was feeding time and scurried over on its thin plant-like legs. It reached up its viney arms as Malik poured nectar over the side. A mouth opened up from each of the vines and it absorbed the nectar.

"Whoa," Harry said, smiling.

"I know," Malik grinned. "Well I'll catch ya later."

Harry unexpectedly reached out to hug him. Malik was surprised but patted his back in return and then squeezed him tightly, lifting him partly off the floor.

"Well aren't you loveable."

Harry laughed and pulled away. "Thanks, Malik. I'll see you later."

Malik put his hand up to his head and saluted him before turning around to leave. Harry walked down to where Dimitri was.

"Harry, how nice to see you," Dimitri said, smiling. "I haven't got an assignment yet, but one is in progress."

"That's okay. Er, I actually have a question. I was just doing some research and I wondered if you knew of any purple plants or leaves?"

Dimitri blinked. "Hmm, purple plants? Not off the top of my head. You mean as its natural color?"

Harry nodded. He knew the Mystic leaves would only reveal its natural color, not the color of some spell or potion that had changed the plant in any way.

"I'm pretty sure the only plant closest to that is the Whispering Waterlily. Obviously it tries to disguise itself as a muggle flower, but its true color, when provoked, is a maroon color. That's the closest I can think of. What color purple?"

"Like a bright purple, like lavender, or actually a little darker than lavender."

"Hmm…nope not that I can think of," Dimitri said. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason. Draco and I just, er, came across some mention of unusual plants and purple just came up," Harry said quickly. "Thanks."

"Of course, Harry. If I hear of anything unusual like that, I'll certainly tell you."

Harry nodded and waved to him. As he left he sighed heavily. That was not a good sign. Dimitri knew nothing about a purple plant. What did that mean? Was it really possible they wouldn't succeed in finding it? He couldn't tell Draco about what Dimitri said. It would break his confidence completely and he'd have no hope left. Harry would just have to double his research.

When Harry got back, he saw Draco in the kitchen making breakfast. The blond was still damp from a recent shower and was wearing only his pajama bottoms. They were slipping low on his hips and Harry could see most of his hips clearly and part of the crease of his pubic bone leading down to his crotch covered by his sweatpants. It was clear the blond wasn't wearing any underwear. Harry felt heat rush to his groin but he tried to ignore it. Draco noticed him as he walked in.

"Where have you been?"

"Just out flying. I had trouble sleeping."

Draco stared at him as he prepared some breakfast too. The blond finished what he was doing and went out to sit in the living room. Harry joined him moments later. They both ate in silence. Harry glanced over at him from time to time. From the distance, Harry could still see part of Draco's hip peeking out. He tried not to stare but found it hard. After eating, he slowly got up and approached the blond.

"Hey," Harry said, sitting on the edge of the couch by his leg, "I'm sorry for arguing yesterday. I think we're both just stressed."

Draco snorted. "Yeah, clearly."

Harry gave him a look. The blond raised an eyebrow in response and rolled his eyes.

"Fine. I'm sorry too."

Harry raised an eyebrow back at him and then began to lie down. The blond was still finishing his meal, but had his plate floating beside him for easy access. Harry laid his body across Draco's and rested his head on his bare chest. He heard the blond snort in amusement but he didn't make any move to get Harry off. Harry draped an arm across the blond's chest as he kept his head down, watching the blond's chest rise and fall with each breath. His fingers trailed across Draco's side and down to his bare hip. He trailed his fingers up and down slowly as he relaxed, listening to Draco's heartbeat. He felt Draco's hand come around his back, trailing down his shirt until he reached the end. The blond's fingers went beneath his shirt, caressing the end of his back. Harry sighed contently. His fingers continued to move languidly up and down the blond's smooth skin. He was tempted to trail his fingers over Draco's crotch but felt too tired to make things more heated. Harry felt his eyes closing.

Sometime later Harry woke up as Draco sat up. Harry rubbed his eyes and sat up too. Their bodies were scrunched together on the couch.

"Did you fall asleep?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Maybe," Harry said.

Draco waved his wand, which had been sitting idly on the small table nearby, and summoned the secure owl that had come out of the fireplace.

"When did that come?" Harry said, wide awake.

"Just now," Draco said. "I moved to get up but you're heavier than you look."

Harry glared and snatched the letter out of his hand. He opened it and read it.

"It's from Hermione. She said she thinks they've figured out what's wrong with Cyprian!"

"Really? What's wrong with him?" Draco asked curiously.

"It doesn't say. It just says to come tomorrow morning to St. Mungo's."

"Why not today?" Draco asked.

"I don't know," Harry said, shrugging. "She said Kingsley is going to be there so maybe he's just not available today. I hope it's nothing bad."

"You know it's going to be bad," Draco said.

Harry sighed and then laid back down on him, draping his arm across his chest again. "Why can't we ever get a break?"

The blond just sighed and Harry could feel his chest move with the motion. He stared out at the fireplace watching the flames flicker as he felt Draco's hand sit on his back again. It was comforting just being close with him. Harry was alarmed at how much it soothed him to be around Draco. Things were so different between them it sometimes felt surreal. Harry's fingers lightly traced Draco's ribs, moving up and down.

"You know you can go lower," Draco said in a sultry tone.

Harry smiled against his chest. "I could."

Draco snorted. "Well if you're going to tease me at least take off some clothes."

Harry smiled and slowly raised himself up. He grabbed Draco's wand and waved it over himself, leaving him clad in his black boxers.

"There. Happy?" Harry retorted with a raised eyebrow.

Draco just gave him an amused smirk. Harry lay back down again. The blond's hand stroked his bare back. Harry could feel goosebumps spread. Draco didn't say anything but after a minute his fingers brushed over his rear. Harry felt his stomach flip in anticipation. Slowly he turned his head up to look at Draco. The blond turned his head as well and then leaned down to kiss him. Harry felt the blond's smooth warm lips on his own. It was slow and gentle and yet heat continued to rush to his groin. Draco's hand moved up Harry's back as he adjusted his position to deepen the kiss. Harry raised himself up a bit trailing a hand up Draco's chest to his head and placed both hands at his neck. Their kiss broke momentarily as Harry adjusted his position and once both hands were on the back of Draco's neck sliding through his hair, Harry pressed their lips together more fervently.

They kissed languidly for several minutes and Draco continued to stroke his back. As Harry tilted his head to kiss him, one hand trailed back down across Draco's chest toward his hip. Harry opened his mouth around Draco's lips as his fingers brushed across the blond's bare hip and slowly trailed over his arousal. Draco groaned in the kiss and brought a hand up to the back of Harry's head. Harry trailed his fingers across the length of Draco's arousal, feeling the hard member through his thin, soft pants. It aroused him more to know Draco didn't have his boxers on. Draco's other hand was still caressing his rear and dipped down to the edge of his boxers. The blond swept a finger up his bare leg beneath his boxers, touching the inside of his thigh.

Harry adjusted his position again, moving his body so he was on top of Draco instead of half on top of him. He caressed Draco's lips with his own over and over as his fingers massaged the blond's arousal. He could hear Draco's soft groans in the back of his throat and it only heightened his own arousal. Harry moved his fingers to the tip of Draco's member, massaging it. The blond moaned loudly, nearly break the kiss, and began spreading his legs apart in response. Harry felt Draco's hand come down his leg and then across his rear pressing up against his entrance. Harry's hand slid over to Draco's hip and as he touched the bare hip he began easing the material off his hips. He felt the blond's arousal against his stomach and it made his cock twitch. Harry used his leg to push one of Draco's legs so his legs would spread apart more. Harry continued to pull the pants down until they bunched at his knees.

He slipped a tongue in Draco's mouth and the blond responded with his own. Their tongues slid together gently as their mouths moved in a rhythm. Harry reached out for Draco's wand almost hitting it over onto the floor. He managed to grab it without looking and then brought it down to Draco's entrance. Their kiss broke as Harry murmured the lubrication spell. Draco's eyes opened and he looked at Harry just as the lubrication poured inside him. Draco's eyes were half-lidded and he felt the blond pull on his boxers. As he pulled them down, revealing Harry's arousal, Harry used the blond's wand to coat his member. He tossed the wand aside and crushed his lips against Draco's. The blond groaned softly and wrapped both hands around Harry's back. Harry trailed his hands down to Draco's hips and toward his thighs. He began pushing them apart as he settled in between his legs. His hands wrapped around Draco's back, trailing them up as he pushed his pelvis down, lining his arousal up at Draco's entrance.

Harry pushed gently, knowing it was only Draco's second time. He felt like the first time he took Draco was a bit rushed. This time they could take their time. The blond hadn't said much about how his first experience had been being on the bottom. Harry was determined to get a better idea this time around. It wasn't often that Draco gave up control, but he didn't seem to mind it. Harry used one of Draco's techniques and grasped one of his arms, pulling the blond's hand from his back and putting it up over his head. Harry pushed his arousal past Draco's entrance. The blond groaned and Harry could feel his thigh muscles tensing. He obviously still wasn't used to it yet. Harry was much more used to Draco being inside of him now, enough that they probably didn't need to use much lubrication. Harry could feel his arousal being pulled inside. It was squeezing him in all the right places. He moaned loudly, trying not to thrust his hips forward as pleasure swirled in his stomach. Draco's back arched as Harry continued to push inside until he was all the way in. Once he was in, he didn't move right away. Draco's muscles loosened and he could feel the blond's back lower back down.

Harry squeezed Draco's wrist and moved his pelvis forward. A rush of pleasure traveled through his cock and into his stomach. Harry tilted his head, slipping his tongue deep into Draco's mouth as the pleasure grew. He thrust his pelvis gently so his erection hit deep inside of him before pulling out. The blond groaned, his pelvis moving with each of Harry's gentle but deep thrusts. The blond's hand that was on his back pressed into him deeply as Harry moved at a slightly faster pace, in and out over and over again. The blond's body moved gently with each thrust and Harry moaned loudly each time. Draco's moans grew louder deep in his throat. Harry could feel it vibrate as they kissed.

As Harry thrust, his member was becoming harder and he could feel his pleasure grow. He moved a little faster and hit a particular deep spot. Draco arched his back, moaning loudly. They broke the kiss, both of them gasping breathlessly as Harry thrust. His free hand moved down Draco's body to his hip, squeezing it gently as he continued to thrust. Draco's head tilted back and his lips parted. Harry opened his eyes for a second to see that and then he trailed his tongue across Draco's bottom lip and slipped it into his mouth. A wave of pleasure struck him and Harry thrust his hips with a bit more force. Draco's legs squeezed around Harry's hips as the pace grew faster. It was still more languid than their last love making where Draco took him more roughly than he usually did. Harry was content to make it last.

For some time Harry thrust deep into him at a constant pace. As they both grew closer to finishing, Harry released his grip on Draco's wrist and put both hands on the blond's rear. He rose up a bit, continuing to grip the blond's rear, and then thrust in.

"Uhhhhhhhghhh! Ughhhhhhh!" Draco moaned, tilting his head backward.

Harry groaned breathlessly, thrusting his pelvis forward. He was so close. He wanted it to last even longer but he could barely hold on. The blond hadn't moved his hand from where Harry left it above his head, and his other hand came up to grab Harry's rear as he thrust deeper and deeper. Draco's body rocked from the force and his head thrashed a couple times from side to side. His neck tilted upward as his lips parted.

"Uhhhhhh! UHHHH!" Harry cried out as his orgasm approached.

They both moaned loudly. Harry's fingers dug into Draco's rear as he thrust his pelvis harder and harder.

"HARRY!" Draco cried out, bringing both hands out to grip Harry's rear.

"DRACO! Uhhh! DRACO!" Harry cried out.

He thrust several more times even harder until they both reached their climax. Harry felt his orgasm burst inside of Draco. His eyes shut and he tilted his head back, letting the rush of pleasure flow through him. Draco's body had stilled but he too had his head tilted back. Harry could feel the blond's orgasm coat his stomach a bit but he didn't care. Harry gasped once his orgasm finished. He could still feel his body was trembling. Draco's legs were trembling as well. Harry slowly pulled out of him and grabbed the wand from the floor to clean them both up. Then he lay back down on top of Draco as they both fought to catch their breath.

As they both lay there silently, Harry thought about how good it felt to take him. The thought of being on top of him, of having Draco's legs wrapped around him screaming, it aroused him so much. He couldn't have imagined it feeling even better than the first time. He was a little more experienced now though since letting Draco take him multiple times.

"So," Harry said breathlessly as he raised his head, "how was it?"

Draco opened his eyes and tried to give him an amused look. " You want a score or something?"

Harry smiled. "No. You never told me how your first time was, you know, last time."

Draco raised an eyebrow and ran a hand through his bangs, pushing them out of his face.

"It was good. What do you want me to say?"

"Well it's not just your first time having sex with someone, but that was the first time you let me be in control."

Draco closed his eyes and snorted. "Don't get used to it."

"Was this time better?" Harry asked, ignoring his comment.

The blond opened his eyes. "Yes, much. You're improving."

"Shut-up!" Harry exclaimed, whacking him on the arm.

He then lay his head back down and exhaled deeply. They both lay there naked together allowing the cool breeze of the blue flames to soothe them. Harry tried his best not to think about Hermione's letter or what might happen next. He just wanted to enjoy the moment and pretend that they didn't have all these obstacles to overcome.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**idreamofdrarry**: LoL! Yay for make-up sex! Also romantic sex too! Lol! I've been putting in a lot more intimate moments than I usually do, but it's to show that they have a lot of passion for one another. It's what brought them together in the first place. Otherwise, they wouldn't have had enough motivation to hit on one another. =) I hope you were somewhat satisfied about the wand. The mystery is still not over. I changed the mistakes that you noticed, by the way. Thanks! I'm really glad you liked Skyla, lol! Skysley! Aww, that's cute! =) I will try not to take so long next time!

**BeLLe ELLe PoTTer**: Yay! I'm glad you liked it! I hope you liked this chapter too! =) I'm sure the romance helped, teheheheh! I will update asap!

**Drarry4eva:** I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully this sex scene was even better. =) They have a lot of passion for each other. Hehe! I will update asap!

I know! No one wants Draco to go back to his parents, not even me, lol! You will just have to see how things work out. And yes, his parents have issues. They're focusing on the fact that their bloodline is dying out. That's why they're so controlling over Draco. But it is ridiculous. Don't worry, I'm not a fan of angsty or depressing endings. So just enjoy the ride! =) I will update asap!

**mochiusagi**: Lol! Yes, indeed, although they don't need an excuse for a shag, hehee! =) Yep more progress on the wand, but still the mystery continues, muhahahaha! I will update asap!

**HPmeghan7474**: Awww, I'm glad you liked it! I know, I'm not a fan of angst either, but you're right. It's essential to any good story to make it believable. How was this for some fluff at the end? Was that good? =) I'm glad you like the sex scenes, lol! They have a lot of passion for one another. I promise more fluffiness in the future. I will update asap!

**Carling**: Awww, yay! I'm so glad you still think Draco is in character. I'm trying really hard not to lose them in the romance. I know, I remember reading fanfics that didn't seem believable either, which is why I wanted to try my hand at them. I'm just a very picky reader (and writer), lol! I'm so glad you're still enjoying it. Sorry for the delay in updating. Studying and working sucks, lol! Yes hopefully the intimacy is still believable as they're bonding. They have a lot of passion for each other, which is one of the main motivations for them even having the slightest attraction for one another. So there will be more intimacy! =) But the mystery will continue to unravel. I will update asap!


	26. Moonstone

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 25: Moonstone **

_His vision was hazy. He squinted to try and see more clearly. There was a door in front of him. He reached out for the doorknob and opened it. He stepped inside. There was a bed and as he approached it the blurry figure came into view. It was Cyprian. He was a sickly grey color and breathing shallowly. Harry wanted to cry out but he couldn't find his voice. He heard an eerie laugh and he turned. Someone else was there. He turned and the vision of the hospital room faded. His head burned as an image of the amulet flashed before him. It had a small ball in the center of it surrounded by the dragon scales, which amplified the power from within. It had a familiar glow to it. It blinded him and a throbbing pain made him cry out. _

Harry jolted up in bed as sweat dripped down the side of his face. It took a moment to calm his heart rate. The vision had been hazy and painful. His scar wasn't throbbing thankfully, a plus to not having a Horcrux inside him anymore, but his head hurt from trying to force a vision of how to stop Voldemort. Draco's plan unfortunately didn't work. Without the Horcrux he had no inside access into Voldemort's mind.

Harry sighed heavily and struggled to get out of bed. He went into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on his face. He stared in the mirror watching as the water dripped off his face. His green eyes stood out more. They looked darker only because his skin had tanned over the summer. His black hair was still a mess but with the magical gel he used he could at least calm his bangs so they fell over his forehead and framed his face nicely. He drifted off into thoughts about Voldemort and Cyprian. The dream didn't seem to mean anything. Even without the Horcrux he still had the ability to predict the future. He thought it was just connected to Voldemort. That must mean he had some sort of seer ability, albeit a mild one, from one of his family members. When the Horcrux was inside him it must have affected his ability making it stronger but also making it drawn to Voldemort, which was why his previous visions were only ever regarding Voldemort in some way.

Harry didn't know how long he stood there lost in thought, but he finally went back to bed sometime later. In the morning he trudged down the stairs in his jeans and black button-down shirt. He was tired but he wanted to get to St. Mungo's as soon as possible. Hermione was probably already there. Draco wasn't in the kitchen yet so Harry made some breakfast for them both. Minutes later Draco walked in. Harry was glad he was already dressed too so they could leave right after eating.

"You nervous?" Draco asked.

Harry shrugged. "A little. You?"

Draco pursed his lips. "I guess, but I wasn't expecting good news."

At the puzzled look on his face, Draco elaborated. "I mean about Cyprian."

Harry glanced down. "Yeah, I know."

Draco stared at him for a minute. "I'm sure they'll figure out a way to help him."

"Yeah," Harry said quietly.

"Come on. You're usually not so somber. It's eerie."

Harry's eyes snapped toward him and he glared. Draco just smirked in response.

"Well that's better. Seriously, stop worrying."

"It's not just about Cyprian," Harry said, slapping food on his plate. A piece of egg flung to the side and landed on the floor.

Draco just watched it and raised an eyebrow. "Then what's it about?"

"I tried to have a vision last night," Harry said. "Obviously, it didn't work."

"Oh," Draco said.

"Oh?" Harry retorted. "That's it? It was your bloody idea!"

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you want me to say? You've disappointed me? I'm not Dumbledore."

Harry's jaw clenched and Draco's eyes immediately softened.

"Sorry," he said awkwardly.

Harry inhaled deeply and walked out of the kitchen. He went into the living room and plopped down on the couch with his food. He began to eat as Draco walked over to the other couch. They both ate in a tense silence. Every time Harry glanced up Draco quickly looked away. Once they finished eating, they headed to St. Mungo's. Harry was trying to prepare himself for the worst.

They were both led up to Cyprian's floor. Instantly Harry froze.

"What?" Draco asked. He was inches from opening the door.

This all seemed a bit too familiar. Harry swallowed.

"Nothing."

Draco opened the door and they both walked in. Harry stopped suddenly. Cyprian was lying in the bed sickly grey and breathing shallowly, just like his dream. So he did have a vision. A very vague one. Hermione was standing there next to a wizard who was clearly the main doctor. He had on a white robe while the three others around had dark blue robes with the St. Mungo's insignia on it. Hermione was wearing her velvet, bronze school robe.

Hermione turned as they entered. "Harry!"

She went over and embraced him tightly. Harry wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey," he said.

As she pulled away, the doctor in the white robe came over.

"You must be Harry Potter," he said, holding out a hand. "I'm Dr. Stives. I've been in charge of Cyprian."

"Nice to meet you," Harry said, taking his hand.

Dr. Stives turned to Draco and held out his hand. "And you are?"

"Draco," he said quietly.

Dr. Stives shook his hand. "Pleasure, Draco."

The blond nodded.

The other doctors helping out summoned a curtain around the bed to block Cyprian from view. As the three began monitoring him and going to get other things, Dr. Stives and Hermione walked to the corner of the room at the opposite end to speak with Harry and Draco privately.

"How's he doing?" Harry asked.

Dr. Stives sighed. "It might be best to wait until the Minister arrives. He will be here shortly. In the meantime you two make yourselves comfortable," he said gesturing to chairs that were in the corner.

When he walked away Harry turned to Hermione.

"How is he, really?" His stomach was clenched tightly. After the vision he had and now seeing Cyprian, he was pretty sure he knew the answer but he was hoping he was wrong.

She glanced downward. "Not good."

"Do they know what's wrong?" Harry asked.

"We have a theory," she said quietly.

"What's the theory?" Draco asked.

Hermione glanced at Draco for the first time since they had walked in. Harry felt so guilty. Draco was always treated like he wasn't there. He knew it was because of the blond's past, but having come to know him now and everything he had been through, he had seen such improvement. It was a completely different side. Harry knew that this was how Draco really was, but he had to put on so many facades in front of his family and friends that he could never truly be himself. He just needed a genuine friend. Unfortunately, not everyone was going to see what Harry saw. It had taken a while for Draco to even open up to him. He certainly wasn't going to show it in public.

"We really should wait for Kingsley. I'm not supposed to say anything," she said, glancing away.

Harry gave Draco a soft smile and the blond just crossed his arms in annoyance. Harry knew it upset him more than he wanted to show. Hermione just gave Harry a sympathetic look and started to walk away back toward the doctors. Harry quickly caught up with her and stopped her a ways before she reached them so they were still out of ear shot.

"So, er, how's Ron?"

Hermione sighed. "He's been spending most of his time training Negae. He doesn't ever want to talk about it. He's still furious, of course, and he feels betrayed –"

"_He_ feels betrayed," Harry whispered harshly.

"I know it seems unfair, Harry, but Malfoy's put him through a lot, even more than us. Not only that but his brother died and everything. That's not something you can just forget about or even easily forgive."

"Yeah, well I lost people too, Remus and Tonks, and Sirius too in the war. You don't see me holding a grudge," he whispered angrily.

"I know," she said quietly. "I think he just doesn't understand why you'd take a risk. Even if Malfoy is better, even if he's improved or is sorry for what he's done and is making it up, why wouldn't you choose someone – anyone else?"

"I didn't _choose_ him!" Harry whispered. "I didn't plan it or anything. It's not like I made the choice to be with Draco just to spite him. I was just as stunned by what's happened with Draco, but I've seen a different side of him unlike you guys."

"I know, Harry. That's why you have to give Ron time and understand that all he sees in Draco is the boy who let the Death Eaters storm Hogwarts and get people he loved, friends and family, killed. You have to admit, it's a lot to swallow."

Just then the door opened and Kingsley walked in with several Aurors. He caught Harry's eye and nodded toward him. Harry nodded back. Dr. Stives approached Kingsley and shook his hand before walking over towards them. Harry glanced over at Draco who hesitantly walked over to them.

"Harry, Draco," Kingsley greeted. "I'm sorry we have to meet under such circumstances. Dr. Stives, please explain the situation."

"It was difficult to pinpoint exactly what was causing such severe illness. We weren't getting anywhere until you informed us of the Horcruxes," he said, glancing at Kingsley. "We weren't sure how to even test for that, but Miss Granger has been working on potion synthesis in order to advance the properties of potions already known in order to make them more useful. She suggested that we use an Aura potion with an advanced synthesis to make it detect abnormalities to figure out where in the body there was a problem. That's when we discovered something unnerving."

"What is it?" Harry asked. "I mean, he can't be a Horcrux. Voldemort barely has enough soul for Slughorn's body –"

"He's not a Horcrux," Dr. Stives said. "But there is definitely something wrong with his soul."

He and Draco exchanged looks of dread.

"What does that mean?" Harry asked.

"It means that his Aura was completely off. Instead of one part or several parts of the body giving off a color and energy it shouldn't, the entire body was a color it shouldn't be, which means that the problem stems not from the body itself, but deeper."

"The soul," Harry reiterated. "So that means…"

"We believe he's missing a piece," Dr. Stives said. "It's the only conclusion we've come to. If he was missing his whole soul he would be a mindless empty shell, but nothing else can explain his condition."

Kingsley expression darkened. "And who do we know who has a knack for taking people's souls?"

"Voldemort," Harry said bitterly, shaking his head. "That's how he's holding on."

Dr. Stives glanced at him in confusion. "It still doesn't make sense how he's holding on without a complete soul."

"Actually I think it does," Harry said.

Hermione's eyes widened. "What do you mean, Harry?"

Harry's expression darkened. "I think that Voldemort had to keep absorbing Dementors and the souls they possessed because it somehow strengthened the amulet, but it was obviously temporary. I think it's because the souls in the Dementors were already complete souls that have turned into energy, but taking a piece of Cyprian, someone who's still alive and got his body –"

Kingsley's eyes widened. "Of course. While Cyprian's still alive that piece of soul constantly remains alive, never dying out like the Dementor souls he absorbed."

"How do we get Cyprian's soul back?" Hermione asked, looking to each of them.

Kingsley shook his head. "That's the real question. It's probably why Voldemort's been so smug."

"Wait, what happens if Cyprian dies?" Draco spoke up. "I mean, Cyprian can't live forever, so let's say we don't find a way to heal him and Cyprian just dies of old age, wouldn't Voldemort die?"

Harry glanced at him. "Maybe. Voldemort could just be biding his time."

"Unless…," Kinglsey trailed off.

Dr. Stives stared at him. "Unless what, Minister?"

"Voldemort can't escape in his weakened state and that doesn't seem like a plan that would make him that smug. I'm concerned that somehow that amulet will allow him to keep sucking the boy's soul from afar?"

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Could it do that?"

"I don't know, but Cyprian's condition has worsened gradually in the past week. If it's possible, that means Voldemort might be able to get a complete soul."

"But even so it might not be strong enough to sustain him for very long," Harry said. "That's why he said he needed me, because my body held one of his Horcruxes."

Kingsley rubbed his chin. "That's a good point. I wish we knew more about that amulet to know what we're up against."

"There might be a way," Harry said.

Everyone turned to him, including Draco. He could feel Draco's anxiety.

"There's a hidden library in Grimmauld Place. I'll see if there's anything on the amulet there."

He could feel Draco relax next to him. Kingsley's eyes moved from Draco back to him and he nodded.

"All right. Let me know immediately if you find anything."

"I will," Harry said.

"In the meantime, alert me of any changes with Cyprian," Kingsley said.

Dr. Stives nodded. "Absolutely."

"I don't want word to get out. If people go into a panic, it will make Voldemort feel as though he's gaining the upper hand. We can't ever let that happen or even let him think that."

They all nodded in agreement. Dr. Stives went back to attending on Cyprian.

"Don't worry. We won't let him gain the advantage," Kingsley said, glancing at each of them. "We've beaten him when he's at his strongest so we can beat him now."

They all nodded quietly.

"Take care. And, Harry, keep me posted."

"I will."

Kingsley nodded and then left the room. The Aurors that came with him followed.

"I hope this turns out okay," Hermione said. "I'm so tired of dealing with war and anything to do with Voldemort."

"Me too," Harry said.

Draco just stared down at the floor in silence. Hermione then sighed and glanced at Harry.

"I'll see you later."

Hermione nodded to Draco politely and then turned around to join Dr. Stives and the others. Harry and Draco made their way back home. It wasn't until they were safe in the confines of Grimmauld Place that Draco spoke.

"Thanks for not ratting me out."

Harry turned. He knew Draco was referring to when Harry pointed out they could do research on the amulet. He of course meant with Draco's dark arts book, not the hidden library. He doubted anything that dangerous would've been put in the library. It wasn't that well hidden. Plus he knew books like that were very few and only handed down directly to descendants. He was sure Draco's family had some sort of lineage with Salazar. Most pure-blooded Slytherins did.

Harry nodded. "No problem. I just hope there's something in the book that can give us an idea."

They both headed up to Draco's room.

"Even if there is, what would be tell the Minister about where we found it?"

"I'd just say the hidden library. I wouldn't have to show him the book. I just need to tell him what I found. He'd trust my word on it."

Draco nodded as they entered his room. Draco pulled the book from the bottom of his locked trunk and began flipping through it. They both sat at the end of Draco's bed. After a few minutes of silence, Draco cleared his throat.

"Sorry about Weasel," he said, not even glancing up at the book.

Harry was quite sure he wasn't, but at least he was being polite and trying to make him feel better.

"Yeah, thanks. I'm sure he just needs more time."

Draco just nodded silently. Harry didn't even remotely believe that. He was sure Draco didn't buy it either.

"Wait. I think I found something," Draco said.

Harry scooted closer. "What is it?"

The blond pointed to a passage on a page. There wasn't a sketch or picture like a lot of the other passages, but the word amulet struck out at them. They both skimmed it.

"Okay. Basically amulets are magical objects used to absorb magical energy, blah, blah. We know that already," Draco muttered. "It's very hard to make an effective amulet. Only certain things in the wizard world can amplify or absorb a wizard's power like a wand and effectively be used to do things a wand could do. Of course they don't say what could give the amulet that kind of power."

"Wait. What's this?" Harry said, pointing. "It says that an amulet, if made properly, can bind itself to the maker."

Draco's eyes widened. "That's not good."

Harry gazed at him. "What do you mean?"

Draco gazed back. "Being bound to something like that, in a magical way, it's like – basically that wizard or witch has control of it. Meaning that Voldemort's soul is the one activating it."

Suddenly, Harry's brain was working in overdrive. "Then that means…what if instead of sucking out Cyprian's soul he wants to transfer himself into Cyprian's body? Could he do that?"

Draco stared at the passage for a minute. "There's not much here, but if Cyprian's soul, even a piece of it, is in the amulet, bound to Voldemort's piece of soul, it's possible that he could do that. But why hasn't he already?"

Harry's eyes narrowed. "Kingsley said that Cyprian's been gradually worsening at a slow pace. Maybe Voldemort is draining him of enough energy so he'll be too weak to fight and Voldemort could easily take over."

"Still, isn't he bound in an anti-magic cell?"

"Yeah, but that amulet isn't simple like a wand. If Cyprian has a connection to Voldemort now through that piece of soul that's with Voldemort, trapped within that amulet, then that means that even from afar that connection could work. It's just like when I had the Horcrux. No matter how far away Voldemort was I could always get into his mind. I was connected to him."

"If that's true, you need to warn the Minister right now. They need to keep up Cyprian's strength for as long as possible."

Harry nodded and immediately jumped up. "I'm going to visit him. I'll be back soon."

Draco nodded. Harry glanced at him once before leaving. The blond was staring down at the book looking tired. Harry felt bad leaving him there especially when he was sure Draco was thinking about the vow. He flew to the Ministry and requested to see him. It didn't take long for him to be escorted up. Kingsley opened the door before Harry even got to it.

"Harry, is something wrong?"

"I've learned something crucial," he said, stepping inside.

Kingsley shut the door. "About the amulet?"

Harry nodded and then explained to him what he and Draco discovered. Kingsley sat there for a minute absorbing the information.

"So what you're saying is that Cyprian could be Voldemort's escape?"

"Yes and we would never know. He knows that we can't harm Cyprian. So even if he suddenly wakes up and seems better we can't just hold him in a cell. His parents won't allow that. And to convince his parents that he was possessed by a piece of Voldemort's soul…well that's just stretching it. It's hard to swallow," he said, using Hermione's words.

It made him flash back to his fight with Ron. He did understand how it could be hard to swallow. That's what made it even worse was that he knew Ron did have a legitimate reason to be upset. Draco did things that he probably couldn't ever completely make up for, at least not for Ron.

"He's got Cyprian's life in the palm of his hand. He knows that we don't want to let Cyprian die. He's counting on that," Harry said, pacing. "Our only choice is to break the connection. That means destroying the amulet."

"Was there anything you found to help with that?"

Harry shook his head. "There wasn't much. There wasn't anything on destroying the amulet."

Kingsley sighed heavily. "This is a more dire situation than I first thought. Maybe Voldemort is gaining the upper hand."

"No!" Harry exclaimed. "We can't let him. You just need to tell the doctors to keep strengthening Cyprian as much as possible. We need to bide time."

"What are you going to do?" Kingsley asked, straightening up.

"I'm going to talk to Sirennia, she's the leader of the centaurs. She was helpful before so maybe she knows something about amulets or how to destroy them."

Kingsley nodded. "I'll head straight to St. Mungo's. One thing, though, even if Voldemort gets Cyprian's body he wouldn't last forever in his body. He needs your body, right? And once in Cyprian's body he can't get to the amulet because it would be safely locked here in the Ministry."

"I'm not so sure," Harry said. "If that amulet can find them together enough for him to transfer into Cyprian's body, he could use Cyprian to get close enough to the amulet to break it out. It's possible that the bond between Voldemort and the amulet would cause the amulet to automatically return to him. He absorbed it into Slughorn's body, which means that it's versatile. It's possible that the protections around the cell wouldn't do anything to that kind of magic. It's not normal magic."

"You might be right. We need to work fast. Let me know if Sirennia tells you anything of importance. Good work, Harry."

He nodded. "I just hope it's not all in vain. We can't let Voldemort get Cyprian."

Kingsley walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "I know."

After a minute of silence Kingsley nodded to him and Harry nodded back. He flew off straight to Sirennia, even though it was a bit of a distance. He didn't want to bother Draco since the blond seemed tired. Even with speed charms it took him two hours to get there by broom. When he landed he immediately felt the presence of the centaurs.

"I need to see Sirennia."

"Harry Potter."

He turned to see the large centaur, Tinyen, appear.

"You're here again," he said. "What is your reason?"

"I'd like to talk to Sirennia. It's urgent. It's about Voldemort."

Tinyen stared at him and then walked ahead of him. Harry followed. He was escorted to the large white tree and Sirennia who was sitting peacefully under it. She stood up when Harry approached.

"What troubles you?" she asked, sensing something was wrong.

"It's Voldemort. He's using this powerful pendant and sucking the soul of a friend to make him stronger. We have to find a way to break the amulet's bond, but we don't know how."

Sirennia tilted her head. "Our kind knows little about wizard magic. Amulets are not something we know much about. What powers this amulet?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't know. We couldn't find much information on amulets."

"Without knowing the source of its power, I have no way to begin to determine its weakness," she said calmly.

Harry sighed heavily, rubbing his temples. He knew it was a long shot, but he didn't want to give up yet. There had to be a way.

"I mean, I don't know. I had a vision of the amulet, but it was blurry and short."

"A vision?" she asked. Her ears perked up. She began to approach him. "I must become one with your mind again."

Harry turned to face her as she came within inches of him. She bent her white head towards him and pressed her forehead against his. Harry stared into her bright blue eyes and saw the spark of power in them as her eyes glowed. He watched the sparks of power flutter. At the same time he could see the flashes before his eyes. His vision was coming back. He could see her eyes and the vision both at the same time, almost overlapping. The image of the blurry amulet passed and suddenly the image was gone. Harry blinked as she pulled her head away.

"I know what the source of its power is."

"What is it?" Harry asked eagerly.

Sirennia bowed her head slightly. "A moonstone."

Harry's eyes widened. That was what was at the center of the amulet, the small glimmer with a familiar glow. It made sense now.

"How do we break the power of the moonstone?"

"You cannot very easily," she said. "Moonstones have been around since before either of our kinds came to be. It is innate magic that absorbs and gives off energy. It is alive and yet not alive and can last for all eternity."

"You mean, like a tree? It's a living thing like a plant or something?"

Sirennia nodded. "The moonstones have great power when affected by other things, like staffs that your kind used. It created a horrible curse for your kind."

"A curse?"

"One of eternal thirst for blood."

Harry's eyes widened. "You mean vampires? They were created by the moonstone?"

"Not directly. In a battle, one of your kind used a staff. The person they fought was wearing a necklace that had a moonstone in it. When the curse went awry the moonstone's abilities distorted it, causing an incurable infection to spread. Once that person bit the next person, a curse was then born and continued to spread until more of your kind began destroying them."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. So the moonstone would continue to keep Voldemort alive so long as Cyprian's soul was in it, but he didn't want to risk destroying Cyprian's soul or even a piece of it.

"You must destroy the amulet without destroying the moonstone to release your friend's soul without any harm," Sirennia said, walking past him and approaching the large white tree.

Harry walked over to join her and stared up at the tree.

"The moonstone has the ability to manipulate anything it touches. It is neither bad or good, but can be used for both," she explained. "This tree has healed our kin for years. When I had been injured in a battle, my kin put me against this tree and surrounded it with moonstones. I could feel the life of the moonstones and the life of the tree. It gave me life but it also took my blood, which seeped into its roots at the same time the moonstones was glowing brightly beneath a full moon. I had had a feeling that the full moon would be important. The bond that now exists with me and this tree is because of the moonstones. If someone were to destroy the tree, I would die."

"So your life is bound to the tree?"

Sirennia smiled. "There is always a balance, Harry. My life was spared only because I shared with the tree's life. I have grown stronger in time."

"Will Voldemort grow stronger?" Harry asked.

"He has delved into a magic far more unstable. He will not grow stronger for he does not have a bond with the moonstone. He only expels its energy when it suits him. He will, however, not die until the bond has been broken with your friend's soul."

"So if we just unbound the moonstone from Cyprian's soul then we wouldn't have to destroy the amulet, right?" he asked eagerly.

Sirennia glanced away momentarily. "It is not that easy to break such a bond once it has been created. I have never tried breaking it and therefore do not know if it is possible."

Harry nodded. "So how do I save Cyprian?"

"The only way is to make him sleep. Keep him frozen so the bond grows weaker. Then retrieve the amulet and bring it here with your friend and I can see if the tree will heal him. You must be careful not to destroy the moonstone or that piece of his soul will die."

Harry sighed heavily. "That amulet is inside Voldemort right now. I'm not sure we can get close enough to retrieve it."

Sirennia turned and he stared into her bright blue eyes. "I know you can find a way."

"I don't think I can," Harry said softly, looking down.

Sirennia bent her head down towards his and forced him to look up. "Perhaps all you need is to lure Voldemort into trying to use it."

Her eyes sparkled and Harry's eyes widened. Of course. If Voldemort could be tricked into using it, either to try escaping or something else, it would give them an opportunity to grab it.

"Sirennia, if I were to be wearing a moonstone, would it counteract the amulet?"

She tilted her head curiously. "I suppose it might but I am afraid there is only one way."

Harry glanced at her.

"You would have to bond with the moonstone using your life energy so that it is connected with you, as it is your friend right now. When it has a bond with you, your soul will have a bond with it making it difficult for another moonstone to try and bond with your soul."

"Is it safe to bond with a moonstone?"

Sirennia's eyes dimmed. "I am afraid I do not know how it will affect you."

Harry swallowed. "This might be the only way. Is it okay if I take one?"

She gestured for him to follow her. Harry followed her to the stream and stared at the smooth white rocks in the water. They seemed so ordinary, but he had seen the way they glowed in the moonlight. They were anything but ordinary. Slowly she stepped into the stream and began searching around. She then dipped her head into the water and pulled out a small moonstone. She placed it gently in his hand. Harry felt an instant tingle when the moonstone was in his palm. There was also a buzzing sensation like the stone was vibrating.

"It is the energy you feel," she said.

He closed his hand around the moonstone. If it was the only way to defeat Voldemort once and for all, he had to do it. He then approached her and bowed.

"How do I bond with it?"

"You must use your blood on it, just a little will do. Then you hold it in your hands and allow its energy to flow through you. It will absorb your blood and connect with you. Be warned, Harry. If any ill effects do befall you, I am not sure of how to reverse them."

"Thank you again for your help, Sirennia."

She nodded toward him. "Should you be successful, Harry, bring your friend here with the amulet and I will help."

Harry smiled. "Thank you. I don't know if I can ever repay you."

She just stared at him with a serene smile on her face. Harry flew back to the house, feeling the weight of the moonstone in his pocket. He didn't want to tell anyone yet, not even Kingsley. It was safer for everyone if they didn't know so that Voldemort would not be able to figure out through Cyprian or any other means. He would have to sleep on it and think about whether it was the right thing to do or if there was anything else they could do. He hoped Kingsley was having some luck.

When he got back home Draco was nowhere to be seen. Harry heard cursing and he went upstairs to find Draco in the hidden library. The blond was tossing books around.

"Hey," Harry said.

Draco wheeled around. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily.

"What took you so long?"

"Oh, er, sorry, just a long talk. Kingsley's going to try and figure out how to help Cyprian from getting weaker."

"Great," Draco muttered.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't find a bloody clue about that stupid bloody purple leaf!" Draco exclaimed. "It's like it doesn't exist! The only way to get any plant looking that color is to charm it! So either the Mystic leaves didn't work or they gave us a clue to a plant that's been altered!"

"It wouldn't do that it would only reveal the unseen so it can't show us an altered plant. There must be something we're missing."

"Well then you bloody figure it out!" Draco snapped.

He then stormed past him and up the stairs. Harry sighed heavily. He really had no clue where to begin either. An idea struck him and he felt in his pocket for the moonstone. Perhaps once bonded with the moonstone it could increase his visions and maybe then he could have a vision of what the purple leaf meant. Harry clutched the moonstone tightly. It seemed there was no way around bonding with the moonstone.

While Draco was somewhere moping or throwing a tantrum, Harry went up to the attic. He sat down on the floor and pulled out the moonstone. He cupped it in one hand as he waved his wand and transfigured a quill into a small knife. Very carefully Harry sliced the center of his hand and placed the moonstone on top of it. He gripped it tightly and closed his eyes. For a moment he just concentrated on his breathing. Nothing else seemed to happen. His palm was aching from the shallow wound. Then it began to itch and tingle. Harry noticed that his hand was beginning to feel warm as if he was placing it nearby a fireplace. The warmth traveled up his arm spreading across his upper body. He exhaled deeply trying to relax. He waited several minutes until the warmth began to fade. He opened his eyes and then opened his palm. The blood was gone. His wound was already beginning to heal.

"There's no turning back now," he whispered.

He closed his eyes and concentrated on the purple leaf. He gripped the moonstone tightly, willing himself to get a vision. He sat there for some time with his eyes squinted shut. He tried to relax his body. The second his muscles relaxed he noticed the familiar warmth seeping through him. He concentrated on it. He could feel his breathing slow until he felt sleepy. He thought for sure he might fall asleep until his head seared with pain. His eyes fluttered and he suddenly saw tons of purple trees. They were surrounding a beautiful bright blue stream of water. He could see that there was a large cliff or mountain side.

His eyes snapped open. He had seen a location with purple trees! They had the same purple leaves on them. Perhaps it was the location where the plant-hybrid was hiding out. Now he just had to figure out what that place was. Immediately, he wrote a secure owl to Hermione to ask her. She was the person who would know anything about everything. Hopefully she would have some idea. Harry then stood back up and felt his body wobble a bit. He felt drained. He placed the moonstone back in his pocket and went to his room. He was so drained he fell asleep on his bed in his clothes for several hours.

When he awoke, he took a hot shower to relax his body and soothe his still pounding head. Then he got dressed into his pajama pants. He searched around in his trunk for something and found a tassel from his graduation cap. He transfigured it into a necklace chain and had to place a spell on it so it would wrap securely around the moonstone to hold it in place. He put it around his neck, slipped a t-shirt on, and hid it beneath that. So long as Voldemort didn't see it, he would never expect it. Hopefully Sirennia was right and that it would counteract the amulet if Voldemort tried to use it against him.

Harry left his room and slowly approached Draco's. He knocked softly.

"What?"

He opened the door and stepped inside. Draco was sitting in his bed flipping through the pages of his Dark Arts book. Harry approached and sat on the end of the bed.

"I doubt there'd be anything in there."

Draco gave him an annoyed look and tossed the book onto the bed. He crossed his arms and sighed irritably.

"I have good news," Harry said.

"Weasel was attacked by his dragon?" Draco muttered.

Harry glared. "I'm going to blame that on your bad mood. No, I had a vision."

Draco turned to glance at him. "Of what?"

"Of the purple trees."

The blond's eyes widened. "What did you see? Do you know where it is?"

"Not quite. I've seen the location but it doesn't look familiar to me so I owled Hermione about it. Don't worry I left out any details."

Draco shrugged. "At this point I'm desperate so I really don't care."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "You don't care if she knows about the vow?"

"I don't care if you have to ask your friends for help. Of course I don't want her to know about the vow!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Fine. Anyway, hopefully she'll know something."

Draco sighed and leaned back against his pillow. "At least it's something."

Harry scooted up the bed until he was next to him. "Yeah. Do you mind if I stay here?"

The blond's lips curled into a smile. "Are you going to cuddle, Potter?"

"Shut-up!" Harry exclaimed.

He went underneath the covers. Draco waved his wand to turn out the lights. He felt the blond move and his arm brushed against him.

"You're warm," he said. "You don't have a fever, do you?"

"No," Harry said. He quickly made sure the moonstone was still tucked in his shirt.

"Good. I don't want to get sick."

Harry snorted. "Trust me, if I was sick I wouldn't tell you."

Draco just snorted in amusement. Harry closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Some time later he was being shaken. Harry opened his eyes.

"What?" He asked, still half asleep.

"What the hell is that?" Draco hissed.

Harry bolted up in bed. The blond was staring at him. His face was slightly glowing in the dark and Harry realized it was because of the light shining on him. Glancing downward, he saw the glowing white light beneath his shirt.

"Er, nothing."

"That's not nothing, Potter!" Draco snapped.

The blond reached out and grabbed him, wrestling him down onto the bed. He pulled the necklace up and stared at him.

"Is that a moonstone? Where did you get it?"

"Sirennia gave it to me."

Draco stared at him suspiciously. "Why is it glowing?"

Harry sighed heavily. "Fine. I bonded with it okay."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "You what?"

"I bonded with it! My life force! It was so I could get a vision."

Draco opened and closed his mouth a couple times. "Is that safe?" he finally asked.

Harry shrugged. "We needed a clue."

Swallowing, Draco glanced down at the bed for a split second. "You're sure you feel fine?"

"I'm fine," Harry said. "It wasn't just for the vision. We need that amulet from Voldemort and this is to help prevent him from using it against me."

"You're going to use yourself as bait?" Draco exclaimed.

"It's the only way to get it!"

Draco sighed and wrung his hands through his hair. He did that often when he was stressed. "You should talk to the Minister first."

"Nobody can know! It was enough of a risk telling you, okay? I can't risk Voldemort finding out."

"Fine," Draco muttered. "When were you going to tell me?"

"Er, never."

The blond glared at him. He then tossed a pillow over at him, which Harry was too sleepy to dodge. It smacked him in the face. They both lay back down again. Harry could feel Draco's eyes on him. The blond was genuinely concerned about him. Harry hid a smile in the pillow. He wondered exactly how strongly Draco felt for him. As he closed his eyes, he tried not to think about the moonstone or Voldemort or breaking the vow. He didn't want to even picture what would happen if any of those things went wrong.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS:**

**Starr Whompin**: Awww thanks! I'm glad you like the dynamic between them now. I hope it feels like a real relationship. They get on each other's nerves, but there's still a lot of passion and developing love between them. I promise you will know what happens with Ron in the near future. =) Lol! Ah yes, the "I love you". Tehhe. You will just have to wait and see about that. I'm so sorry that I'm slowly killing you. I promise to try not to torture you so much and give you a swift merciful end. ;) I will update asap!

**AbbyGirl910**: I'm glad you're liking this so far! I did send you a couple private messages in answer to your reviews. Lol! Hopefully by now you see Harry isn't so ignorant. It wasn't ignorance, it was more of denial on his part. He just couldn't believe Draco was sincere or that he actually had feelings for the blond. Also, that part about Harry wondering if Draco really thought they'd be a couple. Harry thought that Draco wanted to date out of loneliness and have a casual relationship. And there are a lot of things he doesn't know about the wizard world because he didn't grow up there, so that's why Draco is showing him things he missed. He doesn't think that Draco means a serious, long-term and committed relationship. You can date people without being committed or being in a lasting relationship. That's what Harry was thinking about. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the other chapters. I will update asap!

**TributeGirlInAMuggleWorld**: Wow! I'm so glad you're liking the story so far! I hope you continue to like it as it progresses. Sorry for the delay in updating. I will update asap!

**Rushumble**: Aww, that's okay! I'm just glad you really like it so far! I try and double check my work for mistakes, but if you find any feel free to let me know. Thanks again! I will update asap!


	27. Unraveling the Mystery

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note: ****Sorry for the short hiatus. My test is coming up in less than a month now so I've been pretty busy studying on the weekends (which are my only time to write). Once my test is over in May it will be faster updates again. Please bear with me. Thanks and enjoy!**

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**Chapter 26: Unraveling the Mystery **

The next few days that passed were horribly slow. Hermione was so busy working on how to freeze Cyprian's body safely, while at the same time making sure he didn't get any weaker, so she hadn't responded to his owl about the purple leaf. That of course made Draco irritable. Even more so than usual. Harry kept the moonstone close. It hadn't glowed again since Draco found out. While the blond was frustrated he hadn't asked Harry to try to get another vision using the moonstone. Every time he thought of that Harry's stomach fluttered. It meant Draco was worried something would happen to him.

Harry thought about suggesting another break, but he and Draco had just taken a vacation. Draco had requested two weeks off from Dimitri. They spent one week of it already on the trip. They had five days left and then they'd have to get back to doing assignments. That didn't leave them much time to track down the plant-creature-hybrid with very little to go on. Since Draco hadn't come down for breakfast, Harry decided to go up with a plate full of Occamy-roasted eggs, fried Gremlin fingers and some bacon. He knocked on the door but there was no response. Harry opened it and stepped in. He heard the water running and realized Draco was in the shower. After a minute of waiting in his room awkwardly, Harry knocked on the bathroom door.

"What?" Draco snapped.

"Wow. Good morning to you too," Harry said dryly. "I brought you some breakfast."

"Not hungry," Draco retorted.

Harry set the plate down on the bureau near the bed and walked into the bathroom.

"Well you have to eat some time," he argued.

The water suddenly shut off and Draco whipped the shower curtain open. Harry blinked in surprise. His eyes automatically skimmed his body but he quickly looked back up at him. The blond was covered in glimmery water droplets. Clearly he had used a spell to clean his body. The body wash spells often glimmered in the water. Draco stood in front of him for a minute just staring at him. Then he raised an eyebrow and gestured. Harry turned to see he was leaning on the towel.

"Oh, er, sorry," he said, awkwardly handing him the towel.

"It's not like you haven't seen me naked," Draco drawled teasingly.

At the least the blond wasn't in a completely bad mood. Draco wrapped the towel around his body and smirked.

"Next time you want to join me, Potter, just come on in."

Harry raised an eyebrow in return. "Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."

He followed Draco out of the bathroom. The blond glanced over at the plate of food.

"Are you trying to fatten me up?" he asked, staring down at it.

Staring at his body, Harry shrugged. "It wouldn't hurt."

Draco glared. "My body's perfect, thank you."

Harry snorted. "Nobody's perfect."

Raising his eyebrows, Draco smirked and approached him.

"Really?" he asked, shoving Harry backward until he hit the bureau. Then Draco trailed his fingers up Harry's shirt on his bare stomach. "Perhaps it's been so long you've forgotten."

"It hasn't been that long," Harry said, trying hard not to react as Draco's fingers brushed against his nipple. "Are you going to eat?"

Draco stared at him for a second and then pulled away. He gazed over at the food. "What's that?" he asked, pointing to the bacon.

"Oh, it's, er, cooked fat from an exotic creature. I believe the creature is called a pig. And it's got really strange four legs and an even stranger snout, but tastes great."

Draco's curious expression only made it harder for Harry to stifle his laughter. The blond picked up a piece of juicy bacon and ate it.

"Not bad," he said, barely swallowing before picking up another.

Harry grinned. "Glad you like it."

Draco's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You're not poisoning me, are you?"

"Of course not," he said, as Draco turned and ate the last two pieces of bacon. "I just didn't realize you'd like muggle food so much."

Draco halted just as he swallowed the last piece. He turned around slowly, clenching his fist.

"You fed me _muggle_ food?!" he exclaimed.

Harry grinned. "Why are you mad? It looked like you were enjoying it."

"You're dead, Potter!"

"It's Harry for the millionth – "

Draco suddenly lunged at him and Harry dashed quickly out of the room. He ran down the steps as fast as he could. The idea of a naked Draco chasing him was incredibly amusing. He would've stopped to laugh about it if Draco wasn't pissed and intent on maiming him. His goal was to hurl himself into his room and lock the door, but Draco had managed to grab his wand while Harry was defenseless. The blond was prepared and shouted a spell. Harry dodged it by ducking and then throwing himself at the door. He realized a second too late that the spell wasn't aimed at him. His door was frozen in place half-way open and unable to shut. Harry managed to dodge when Draco tried to grab his arm and ran around his bed. Now he was on the other side of the bed from Draco who was standing with his towel barely wrapped around his waist, his hair still damp and his wand in hand just smirking at him.

"I didn't think the famous Harry Potter would run like a little girl."

Harry glared. "I'm defenseless," he said, glancing over at his wand, which of course was on the nightstand by the bed on the side that Draco was on. The blond glanced at it a second later and his smirk widened.

"Why don't you try and grab it?" Draco drawled, lowering his wand as if giving him a chance.

Harry pursed his lips. "Because I'm not that stupid."

Draco laughed. "Sure."

Harry hesitated and watched Draco's movement. When the blond turned and started walking to the side of the bed, Harry attempted to jump over and grab his wand, but Draco used a spell that flung him down on the bed. The blond then jumped on top of him and pinned him down.

"Nice try," Draco said.

Harry glared up at him. The blond was sitting on his lower stomach region with his legs tightly around his waist.

"This is seriously all over a piece of bacon?" Harry said, snorting. "There's something wrong with you."

Draco's eyes narrowed slightly but his smirk never faded, which only irritated him further.

"Hmm, this is a promising position," Draco said.

Harry attempted to move his arms but Draco pinned them down with his hands. He had let his wand fall next to him, but it was still out of Harry's reach. Draco had Harry's wrists in his hands, but he was able to move his index finger down Harry's neck. The touch caused goosebumps to rise. Harry could feel warmth spreading to his groin. He tried to keep eye contact without making it obvious that his body was reacting. Draco bent down and pressed his lips against Harry's neck. He felt the blond's lips move as he kissed his way up his neck to underneath his earlobe. Harry stifled a gasp of pleasure. His hands jerked and Draco pulled away, smiling. He knew Harry was reacting. The blond tightened his grip on Harry's wrists and bent down, capturing Harry's lips in an intense kiss. Their lips parted beneath one another's, moving passionately. Harry attempted to move again, but he couldn't. He tilted his head as Draco pressed down more firmly, moving his lips roughly against his. He felt Draco's tongue penetrate his mouth and Harry couldn't suppress the groan that escaped his lips.

Draco suddenly pulled away, the sound of their kiss echoing softly between them. He then suddenly released his grip on Harry, grabbed his wand and rolled off the bed. Harry blinked out of his daze and sat up. Draco was walking toward the door. He turned around and smirked.

"I better get dressed now that I'm dry."

With that, he wheeled around, his towel nearly falling off in the process, and disappeared. Harry stared at the doorway in annoyance. He could feel his arousal poking through his boxers.

"Jerk," Harry muttered.

He went downstairs hoping Draco would stay in a good mood. When he got downstairs he saw a secure owl fluttering in the fireplace. Thankfully the fireplace was off. Harry let it out and read the letter. It was from Hermione. His eyes widened. He dashed up the stairs and barged into Draco's room. The blond was standing in his boxers about to put a shirt on.

"What the –"

"Hermione thinks she knows a purple plant!" Harry exclaimed.

Draco's expression changed. He forced the shirt the rest of the way and walked over to him. Harry handed him the letter.

"So, what, she thinks this plant is in the muggle world?"

"That would explain why we couldn't find any information on it in the books," Harry said, pacing. "Maybe this creature passed through the muggle world, or it's living there."

"Why would a magical plant live in the muggle world?"

"I don't know," Harry said, sighing. "It's the best lead we've got."

Draco stared down at the letter. "So we're going to the Fairy Pools at the Isle of Sky."

"It's in Scotland. It will be a bit of a drive –"

"You mean fly."

"Whatever," Harry said, rolling his eyes. "Hopefully the purple plant will be there."

"And if it is what then?"

"I don't know. Maybe the creature eats this plant or something. Maybe there's a clue. We won't know till we get there."

"I just hope it's not another shrewt chase."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "You mean wild goose chase?"

Draco gave him an incredulous look. "That is the most ridiculous phrase I've ever heard and I don't care to know its meaning."

Harry shrugged. "Fine. Whatever. We can leave tomorrow."

"No, we're leaving now."

"We won't get there until late," Harry argued.

"We can sleep in the car and bring food with us. We don't know how long we'll be there. And it doesn't sound like this place will have shelter nearby. It sounds like it's in the middle of nowhere."

Sighing, he nodded. "All right. You finish getting dressed and I'll pack up the car."

A little while later they were on their way to Scotland. They were both lounging in the back with a butterbeer attempting to pass the time by listening to music. Harry ended up falling asleep. He woke up some time later feeling something on his neck. Draco was kissing his neck. Harry opened his eyes to see the blond lying on top of him.

"Draco, what are you doing?"

The blond pulled away. "It would be really sad if by now you didn't know what a kiss was."

Harry snorted. "Are you trying to take advantage of me while I'm sleeping?"

"You're not sleeping now," Draco drawled, pushing their lips together.

Harry felt the blond's warm, smooth lips cup his own. Their lips roved up and down over one another's. He felt the blond's hands trail up his shirt. Harry opened his eyes and broke the kiss.

"I'm too tired," Harry said.

The blond raised an eyebrow. "Fine. You don't have to do anything. You just lie there and I'll take you."

Harry glared. "That's not how sex works."

"Actually that would work just fine," Draco countered, slipping his bare hand down Harry's pants to stroke his bare hip.

Harry's body jerked in surprise. The blond began sliding a finger over to the crevice of his hip bone just beside his crotch.

"This is a much better way to pass the time."

"I bet you can't go without sex for any decent amount of time," Harry said.

Draco's eyebrows rose. "What does that mean?"

"It means I think that sex is the main thing you enjoy out of a relationship."

Draco gave him an amused look. "Let's see, relationships are about compromise, understanding, fighting, working things out, so yeah clearly sex is the best part of a relationship."

"Ha ha," Harry said, glaring in annoyance. "How about we make a bet?"

The blond snorted and got off of him. "And what's that?"

"I bet you can't go without sex for a week."

Draco sat back and took a swig of his butterbeer. "Am I allowed to touch myself?"

Harry's mouth opened slightly and he shut it. Draco hadn't even blinked or looked surprised or worried.

"Er, yeah. That's fine."

"What's the winner get?" Draco asked.

"How about the winner gets to choose one favor for the other person to do, no matter what it is and without consequences."

Draco's lips curled upward. "Interesting. And also how about if I win we switch brooms for a month."

"What? Why?"

"Because your broom is clearly the more expensive one, since I bought mine after I was disinherited."

"You could always buy one now."

"It's a waste of a lot of money since I already have a broom."

Harry sighed. "Fine. We can switch brooms for a month."

Nodding, Draco held out his hand. Harry shook it in agreement. The rest of the trip Harry was in and out of sleep and surprisingly Draco didn't make any moves on him. They arrived there and Harry had to blink to make sure he wasn't imagining things. Although the sun was setting they could still see clearly. There was a bright blue river flowing through a mountain side and covering the tall mountainous valley were a bunch of purple plants. It was incredible. Harry had never seen such colors before.

"And magic isn't making them this color?" Draco asked in awe.

Harry shook his head. "No. Hermione said it's natural. Maybe it's something in the water turning the plants purple."

Draco nodded. "This has to be it," he whispered.

Harry glanced over at him and saw the blond's hopeful gaze staring out at the plants. Harry swallowed. He hoped it was.

They set the flying car down on top of one of the mountainous areas. They both walked over to the steep edge and peered over.

"So what do we do? There's got to be several miles of these plants," Draco said, staring off into the valley.

"Well, if the plant-creature thing is here, there must be a way to lure it out."

Draco turned to him. "How? We don't know anything about it."

Harry rubbed his forehead and sighed. "Let's see. The witch that encountered it must've been doing something that disturbed it."

"Well she was a researcher, like us. She was probably just walking along looking for something else."

"Then that's what we'll do. We'll walk along the purple plants."

"Walk along them?" Draco asked gesturing. "They're sideways sticking out of a big wall of rock that keeps going for miles."

Harry gave him a look. "Obviously we can use a sticking spell on our shoes so we don't fall off the edge. It will be dark soon though so we don't have much time today."

Draco shrugged. "All right. Let's go."

They put the spell on their shoes and began walking amongst the strange purple plants. They were short and had very thin branches and were very flexible to the touch. Harry had to admit he had no idea what they were looking for. Finding this creature still seemed impossible but they had to try. After twenty minutes Draco sighed irritably.

"This seems pointless!"

"We just got here. Besides, other plants we've encountered haven't been very forthcoming," Harry said.

Draco sighed and muttered under his breath. Harry's shoulders slumped. He didn't know what else they could do. It was the only lead they had.

For about an hour they walked around the purple plants trying to figure out where the clue was or whether or not the plant-creature was even there. They found no clues. They trudged back to the flying car sweaty and discouraged. Once inside the car Draco tossed off his shoes and his shirt and grabbed a butterbeer. He took a large gulp and slumped against the seat. Harry sat next to him and grabbed a butterbeer as well. He didn't know what to say. He was afraid if he kept trying to tell the blond not to give up he would get even more aggravated.

"Maybe we'll have better luck tomorrow," Harry said quietly.

"Or it's nocturnal," Draco said.

Harry nodded. "Oh, yeah, that's true. We can eat something while we wait for the sun to completely set then go out again."

Draco nodded silently. Harry was thankful he had taken a nap. They waited until around 10 before going out again. They didn't want to startle the plant-creature by using their wands for light so they used spells on their eyes for night vision. The colors were different but they could still see everything. They walked along the same path again for at least a half an hour with no luck.

"Maybe it likes being near water," Harry suggested.

Draco nodded silently. Harry didn't like that the blond seemed withdrawn again. Perhaps he was just tired. While he rarely did it, Harry silently prayed that they would find the elusive plant-creature. They reached the river and since there was no bank to walk on they had to stay horizontal with the sticky spell on their feet to walk along the rocky wall.

Ten minutes after walking Harry had a feeling of dread. There was nothing suspicious that he noticed. Would they even recognize a clue if they saw it? Draco kicked at the dirt.

"There's nothing! We might as well try again tomorrow!"

Harry watched him angrily stomp up the side of the tall rocky wall. It would've looked humorous if Harry didn't understand how Draco was feeling. Sighing, he slowly climbed back up the wall. They got to the car and barely said goodnight. Draco lay down right away. Harry lay down as well and stared over at Draco who was turned over on his side facing away from him. He wanted to comfort the blond but also didn't want to piss him off. Harry scooted closer and pressed a hand on Draco's bare shoulder.

The blond instantly shook his shoulder. "What?! I'm trying to sleep!"

Harry immediately removed his hand and scooted away. "Er, sorry, it's nothing."

Draco didn't say anything. Harry rolled over on his side and faced away from Draco. He hated this feeling. Whenever things were going badly between them Harry felt miserable and defeated. He wanted everything to turn out okay, but even thinking about what they had to accomplish made the feeling of dread worse.

**XXXXXXXX**

The next day Harry woke up to find Draco already gone from the car. He got out of the car and peered down into the valley. All of a sudden he heard something and he looked up to see Draco flying his broom. The blond landed and angrily tossed the broom to the ground.

"I just flew over this entire area and didn't see any strange creature, plant, nothing!"

"Well it's not just going to be hanging out where people can easily see it," Harry said. "It's probably scared of people. There has to be a way to make it come out. Maybe by making lots of noise."

"Wouldn't that just scare it away?" Draco retorted.

Harry shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know. It's worth a shot."

"No! Then if we scare it away even further we'll never find it!"

"Fine! Then what's your bright idea?"

Draco glared at him and then ran his hand through his hair. He paced back and forth for a minute.

"We could put up a spell, maybe a wall around this entire area so it can't escape."

"Okay," Harry said.

"That way if it is here among the purple plants it can't try to escape very easily."

Harry nodded. "I'll get my broom."

He unshrunk his broom from the back of the flying car. He was grateful they had kept their brooms in the car just in case. They both flew over various parts of the area creating an invisible wall, similar to an electric fence for animals. If anything tried to break free or get past it, a bright spark would ignite. If the creature was powerful enough it could break through but then at least they would know where it was and be able to follow it.

Once that was done they both went back to the car to eat. Harry glanced over at Draco while they ate. He wanted to ask him if he was feeling better, but he wasn't sure what kind of a mood it would put him in. Sometimes when Draco was in a bad mood, trying to be nice only made him more irritated. He had learned that it was best to leave him alone for a while.

They both took their brooms and flew around the area, trying to stay high enough out of sight as to not alert the creature if it was there. As Harry flew around, the warm breeze in his face, he thought about what he had learned about the witch who had vanished. This plant potentially had black teeth and could camouflage itself. It was possible that it was camouflaging itself with the purple plants. Harry used a spell to try and see if he could reveal anything hiding in the plants. After hours of searching the area, he found nothing. He was starting to become discouraged to the point of being as irritable as Draco. The blond had taken a few swings at the poor defenseless car. Thankfully it had protection spells on it to help keep the paint and invisibility mode safe.

"Damnit! This is impossible!" Draco exclaimed.

"Don't worry we'll –"

"Don't worry?! Don't bloody worry, Potter?!" Draco bellowed. "Clearly this thing either isn't here or doesn't exist!"

"You can't say that yet! Remember it can camouflage itself!" Harry yelled back.

Draco's face turned red. He pushed his bangs out of his face. "Fine! I'm checking again."

"Go ahead," Harry muttered.

Draco flew off and Harry just stayed by the car. The thing that angered him the most was having taken an unknown risk to bind himself to the moonstone in order to get a clue that wasn't getting them anywhere. Maybe he had used the moonstone wrong. The vision he had seemed to be similar. He remembered purple plants or purple something.

It was dark by the time Draco got back. Harry could tell from the look on his face that he hadn't found anything. Harry didn't even bother asking him. While he was lying down in the car, Draco was outside sitting on a chair he had transfigured from a rock. He probably needed the fresh hair to cool off. Harry had the windows down so he could feel the slightly cooler breeze. It was still warm and muggy but at least not as bad as during the day.

When Harry moved to the front of the car to peer out the windshield he saw Draco's hand move up to his face, around the area of his eyes. Almost as if he was wiping at them. Like he was crying. Suddenly there was a lump in his throat. He was quite sure Draco wanted to be alone, especially if he was crying, but at the same time Harry couldn't bear not to do anything. He grabbed a butterbeer and stepped outside, making sure that Draco heard him coming. Just as he figured the blond wiped at his eyes and then moved his hand through his hair as if he had been doing that all along. Harry silently stood next to him and held out a butterbeer. Draco glanced at it and then up at him before taking it.

Harry transfigured a stick into a chair and sat down next to him. They both stared up at the darkening sky. The sun had set and now they were watching as the stars slowly started to come out.

"There might be another area with purple plants," Harry said quietly.

Draco was silent for a minute. "Maybe."

Harry turned to gaze at him. "It's only been two days. Maybe this thing only comes out on a full moon."

"I doubt it," Draco said. "The likelihood of that isn't likely."

Harry glanced down at the ground. He adjusted his position and winced. "Ow."

Draco turned to him. "What do you expect? You made your chair out of a stick," he said with a snort.

Harry turned and stared into his eyes. "A stick is just as good as a rock."

"Not if the rock is smooth. Makes for a smoother seat," Draco retorted.

Harry raised an eyebrow and then sighed and leaned back in his uncomfortable chair. Harry then scooted his chair closer to Draco. As the blond turned to glance at him, Harry reached over and took Draco's hand in his. He closed his fingers around the blond's and then leaned back again. Surprisingly, Draco didn't say anything. He didn't pull away either. They sat there in a somewhat comfortable silence for a while. Harry finally got sick of his chair and went back in the car. He wasn't sure what time Draco finally joined him. When Draco finally did, Harry rolled over and wrapped his arms around the blond's stomach. He rested his head right by Draco's. He heard Draco sigh. His heart nearly broke at the sound of the sad sigh so he leaned forward and kissed the back of the blond's neck. He then tightened his grip around him. Draco didn't make any move to scoot away or remove his grasp.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The third morning, Harry woke up to find his head was pressed against the back of Draco's neck. His arm was still wrapped around the blond's stomach. Draco's body was rising and falling steadily with each breath. Harry didn't want to wake him so he carefully pulled himself away. He slipped out of the car and took his broom flying. Anger was building up inside of him. This stupid plant-creature was their only hope and Draco needed it. He wouldn't give up until they found it. After circling the area once, Harry used a spell to try and see movement. It was hard when the wind blew the trees.

"Damnit!" He hissed.

He raised his wand. There had to be a spell he could use to help. All his survival with Voldemort had to teach him something. He thought hard. That's when a slightly insane idea struck him. He remembered being in Voldemort's head several times since his reincarnation to his body. He had seen Voldemort torturing people and using dark magic. There was one dark magic spell that he remembered in particular. Voldemort had used it to extract information from people. It was a spell that completely took over the body and distorted it until the information he needed or the memories he needed leaked out, leaving a shell of a person. However, on something like a plant perhaps it could reveal clues. He knew it was illegal to use dark magic, especially something powerful like that.

He glanced around. They were in the muggle world so it would be harder to detect and now that he was an adult and no longer underage the Ministry didn't keep tabs on his wand like they did others. He had to take a risk. Inhaling deeply, Harry closed his eyes and pictured what he remembered Voldemort doing. He raised his wand and said the incantation slowly to make sure he was pronouncing it right. A black cloud of smoke sprung from his wand and began drifting toward the plants. It created a black fog around the area, instantly masking all the beauty. It attached to the plants, encasing it in the black smoke. After a minute the spell lifted and the black fog began to disappear. Harry looked around curiously. Perhaps it didn't work on plants.

He flew lower to the ground and suddenly caught sight of something that stood out. It was something black on one of the purple plants. It was shining but not because the object itself was shiny. It must've been because of the dark spell. It had revealed the abnormality in the plant. Something that didn't belong. Harry flew down closer and reached out toward it. He picked it up and held it in his hand. It was about the size of the moonstone. It was a large, black tooth. Instantly, Harry's adrenaline rose. He soared up high and looked around. He didn't see anything that belonged to the tooth, but it definitely had been there at some point. The question was, how long ago had it been there?

Harry flew back to the car. Draco was still sleeping. Harry burst into the car, causing Draco to bolt upward. His hair was in disarray and he blinked groggily. The rays of dawn cascaded into the car, making Draco squint.

"Draco, I found a clue!" Harry blurted out.

He hadn't even given Draco a chance to ask what was going on. The blond immediately sat up. His expression lightened and instantly Harry could feel the warmth spreading inside of him. Draco had hope again and it filled him with hope. Harry handed him the tooth.

"I don't know how long it was sitting there, but the plant has definitely been here! Maybe still is!"

Draco's lips curled into a wide smile. "If it is we can possibly use the tooth to either track it or lure it out of hiding."

Harry grinned and opened his mouth to say something. The blond grabbed his shirt and pulled him into a deep kiss. When he slowly pulled away, the blond's nose was still brushing up against his. Draco's bright silver-blue eyes stared into his.

"Good work, Harry," he said, grinning.

Draco released him and began slipping his shirt on. Harry's heart was pounding.

"Is that all I get?"

Draco smirked in amusement. "We can't do anything else for a week, right? The whole 'can't go a week without sex thing'."

Harry felt his cheeks heat up. "Er, yeah, I just meant – I mean kissing doesn't count."

"A brief kiss maybe, but anything more always leads to more," Draco said, raising an eyebrow.

He then moved past him and out of the car. Harry put a hand over his chest and breathed deeply, trying to calm his erratic heartbeat. If they did find even another clue or the plant-creature itself, they could celebrate later. At least now they had something solid. Draco's hope had been restored, at least temporarily. Harry hoped that it would last.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**mochiusagi**: Lol! Well you will just have to see how the moonstone plays into it and whether or not it works with Voldie. =) You should google the Fairy Pools of the Isle of Sky. They are so awesome! I will update as soon as I can. My test is coming up soon so that's why it's been taking me longer to update.

**Rushumble**: Awwwww, I'm so glad you liked it! The fun and romance will still be there even during the suspenseful moments. Always something to look forward to, right? I promise to update as soon as possible! =)

**Carling**: Awww I'm glad you're sticking with it! It's okay. I understand about busy schedules so I'm not offended if you miss reviewing a few chapters. =) I actually took longer to update this than expected. Once my test is over in May it will be easier to update. I'm so glad you still like it! And I'm glad you think the pacing is good. I don't want to rush anything. =) I actually just updated after you reviewed this last chapter, lol! So hopefully you like the newest chapter as well! I will update as soon as I can! Thanks!

**Guest (1)**: In response to your review, I'm not really sure why you were so upset with the Jace scene in chapter 17. I don't know what you mean about Harry telling him all about Draco. He didn't say anything. He told Jace it was none of his business. All Jace got out of him was that they had started dating long after Jace had been with Draco. Jace isn't a big character in the story. You only see him now and again. And besides, that small scene with Jace doesn't kill the romance between Harry and Draco that has been building for all 17 chapters. Jace was only trying to figure out if Draco dumped him because of Harry or not. He got his answer, but he didn't learn anything else about them. Harry DID tell him to mind his own business. So I'm not really sure why you think Harry gave him intimate details about anything. He didn't. I'm sorry that you're missing out on the rest of the story because of that one scene, but I appreciate your feedback none the less. Thanks for reviewing.

**EllenZzzz**: I'm glad you're liking it so far! My goal is to make this story believable so I'm glad that despite putting these two odd characters together that it's still believable. Yes the emotional bonding is finally happening along with the physical bonding. =) It will continue to grow. I will definitely continue to try to keep a good balance of the smut and fluffy romance as well as the mystery and adventure! That's my goal! I'm sorry it took a little while to update. I've been studying a lot lately so once my test is over the updates will be quicker. I will update again as soon as I can!

**Guest (2)****:** Awww, thanks! I'm so happy you love the story! I'm sorry it took me a little while to update. My test is coming up soon so I've been studying a lot on the weekends. Don't worry I always update eventually. I will try updating quicker, but I can't promise anything until my test is over. So please bear with me! I will update eventually but for the next month it might take longer than normal. And don't worry you will find out about Cyprian. =) Thanks for reviewing!


	28. The Next Trial

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 27: The Next Trial**

Shortly after their lucky break, Harry's joy plummeted. They still couldn't find the plant-creature. There had to be something they were missing. If they knew more about the creature, it would be easier. After a couple more days of searching, Harry and Draco came up empty handed. Weeks later they had to start up their research again with Dimitri. That of course put Draco in a very bad mood. So Harry tried to steer clear of him and give him some space, which turned out to be impossible seeing as how they had another assignment.

They hovered on their brooms in the dense forestry as they searched for the next plant. Draco cursed and swiped at another branch that smacked him in the face.

"Fuck! Where is this stupid plant?!"

"Maybe the expression on your face is scaring it away," Harry said dryly.

Draco whipped his head around. "Shut-up, Potter!"

"Don't call me that!" Harry snapped back.

He wiped the sweat off his forehead and glared at the back of Draco's head. He was too hot and tired to deal with Draco's mood swings.

"There's no way we'll find it like this! I'll go this way!" Draco exclaimed, taking off.

Harry watched him go and inwardly cursed. Draco always pulled away when things got rough. It wasn't exactly conducive to a healthy relationship. Then again, he still stuck around when Voldemort was on the loose even though being around Harry made it more dangerous for him. Sighing, Harry flew on. It wasn't until something smacked him in the face that Harry even noticed anything was moving. He was flung right off his broom to the ground. His broom hovered in the air above him. Harry blinked and looked up. A very tall plant rose above him. It had a long skinny stalky body, two beady little eyes and seemed to be able to sprout more plant tentacles at will. They wrapped around Harry's body, lifting him up into the air.

Harry struggled against them. "Put me down!"

Suddenly the plant rose him high up into the air and he plummeted back down. Harry gasped loudly. Thankfully the plant didn't throw him to the ground. It just kept raising him up and down at a rather fast speed, almost like it was toying with him.

"Draco!" Harry shouted.

The plant stopped suddenly at Harry's outburst. The grip around his body tightened and the tentacles began to spread all over his body.

"Hey! Cut that ou–" Harry's cry was muffled as the tentacles wrapped around his face.

A bright light erupted and Harry fell to the ground, groaning. He turned his head to see Draco hovering nearby with his wand out. The plant bounced up and down on its stalk, almost excited to have another person to play with. It jumped up onto a nearby tree and sprung its growing tentacles toward Draco. The blond dodged it but not well enough. One of the tentacles wrapped around the front of his broom, forcing him to stop mid-flight. Draco jumped off the broom before a tentacle could grab him and used a charm to float back down. The plant's tentacles began growing as they lunged toward him, trying to surround him. Draco cast a shield and then ran straight toward the plant.

"Draco! What are you doing?!" Harry exclaimed.

The blond cast a stunning spell, leapt over the wide-eyed plant, and then cast a bubble around the plant. Only its stalky body was encased in the bubble. All its tentacles were still spread out. While the plant remained motionless for a second, Harry jumped up and began zapping static electricity spells at the tentacles. They cringed and began curling away back toward the plant's body. Draco held the bubble in place. The plant seemed to wake up from its stun and began to thrash, but Harry's spell kept it from spreading and Draco's spell kept it from escaping. Pretty soon all the tentacles pulled back into the plant's body and it was securely trapped in the bubble.

Harry lowered his wand and approached the plant. It was staring at them with its beady eyes, almost solemnly.

"Sorry. We do have a good home for you though. Promise," Harry said.

Draco rolled his eyes. "It doesn't understand yo—"

One of the tentacles came from underground and smacked Draco in the face.

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed, tightening his bubble so the tentacles couldn't go underground.

Harry smirked. "You were saying?"

Draco glared at him and rubbed his cheek. "That doesn't prove a thing!"

Harry gave him a look and then summoned his broom. They both took off for Dimitri's. When they dropped off the newest addition to the family, Dimitri had no news on the purple plant samples that Harry had collected and gave to him when they got back from their search. Sadly he had made no progress as of it because it was a muggle plant and he wasn't sure exactly what to look for in trying to figure out its significance to the plant-hybrid.

When they got back home, Harry immediately went up to his room to take a shower. He stood in the shower for a long time. His mind was spinning about the vow, about Cyrpian, about Voldemort, and about his friends. Everything was hanging on by a thread. What was worse was that Harry's birthday was tomorrow. He had no friends to celebrate it with, besides Draco and the blond wasn't in the best mood. That night Harry went to bed early hoping that he would somehow feel better in the morning.

He woke up the next morning feeling sluggish and when he went to Draco's room, he found the blond wasn't there. Draco wasn't in the kitchen either. He had just up and left. He knew Draco was in a bad mood but he thought for once Draco could try to not let the negativity consume him, at least for Harry's birthday. The fireplace crackled and Harry caught the secure envelope as it fluttered toward him. Upon opening it, he found it was a birthday card from Ginny. At least Ginny didn't seem to judge him for dating Draco. He missed Ginny. Not in the romantic sense, but rather missed when they were pretty close friends. He didn't get to see her much anymore. The next envelope that came a few hours later was signed by Hermione and Ron, but Harry knew just Hermione had signed it.

Harry cupped his face in his hands for a minute before whirling around on his heels. He grabbed his wand, swished it to change into comfortable clothes and then summoned his broom. He didn't know where he was going but he needed to get away. He flew hours away until he reached Hogwarts. It had been the one true place he called home and it would always be home no matter how many years passed.

" 'Arry!"

Harry smiled as Hagrid ran over to him, shaking the ground as he did so. He lifted him up with ease, squeezing him tightly.

"How's 'e new job coming?"

"It's great. How's your class going?"

Hagrid flushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Students really seem to like me. Some of 'em remind me of you and Ron and Hermione, the way they stick together and 'course all the trouble they get into."

Harry laughed. "Sounds like a great bunch."

"What're yere doing here?"

"Just paying a visit to an old mentor," Harry said, smiling.

He hugged Hagrid one last time and stepped into the school. Walking the hallways brought back so many memories. Students stopped him to shake his hand and introduce themselves. He was happy to see kids enjoying Hogwarts to the fullest without worrying about death and destruction. Harry climbed the familiar spiral staircase to the Headmaster's office. The Headmistress was teaching her own class and she was also busy working with Kingsley to set protections around the school in case Voldemort tried anything. Harry stared at the perch where Fawkes used to be. Phoenixes were amazing creatures. They could be reborn again and again, but when they became attached to someone, sometimes they decided not to be reborn once their owners had passed. Fawkes had finally decided not to awaken. McGonagall had a phoenix of her own now, a beautiful stark white one with blue on the tips of the wings and between the eyes. The eyes of the phoenix were just as blue as the tipped wings. She cooed at him as he entered.

"Hi Serenity," Harry greeted.

Serenity rose from her perch and glided over to him, perching lightly on his shoulder. For how large of a bird she was, it was amazing how light she felt. Harry rubbed her under her beak.

"I've missed you too."

"Harry."

Turning, Harry stared at Dumbledore's portrait. The previous Headmaster smiled at him.

"Dumbledore. It's been a while."

"Yes. Minerva has kept me informed of the happenings with Voldemort."

Harry smiled and shook his head. "You just don't want to rest from this life, do you?"

"Perhaps when he's finally gone, but I'll always be here in spirit no matter what," he said. His eyes twinkled. "What brings you here?"

Harry sighed. "Dumbledore, I'm not sure you would approve. I'm kind of glad you're dead right now just because of what I have to tell you."

"Oh," he said, raising his eyebrows.

Biting his lip, Harry finally told him what had progressed between him and Draco and the fight with Ron. Dumbledore's expression never changed to one of disgust. He looked intrigued.

"Well, I can't say I'm not surprised, but pleasantly so."

"Really?" Harry asked with wide eyes.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Draco needs someone in his life, a positive influence. Someone who will be there to guide him and use all of his talents for the best potential, not the worst. I've always suspected there was more to him than meets the eye, but despite how he appeared back in school he has a gentle heart. And that heart was being overrun by the darkness of his family. He couldn't fight back against them, so he needed someone to save him."

"It wasn't me that saved him. He broke away himself."

"Perhaps technically he did, but I doubt he would've done that had he not experienced the tribulations he had with you and of course the mercy you showed him when he didn't deserve it."

Harry smiled sheepishly and glanced downward.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Ron, Harry. Despite his hatred of Draco and his family, the things you two have overcome together is not so easily pushed aside."

"That's what I thought at first too, but I just don't think he'll come around. He has too much of a grudge against Draco."

"Yes, well, my friends didn't exactly approve of Grindelwald either."

Harry's mouth fell open. "You and Grindelwald? You – I mean – You never said –"

Dumbledore smiled sadly. "You must've wondered why I never married or spoke of anyone special in my life. I had a love. Grindelwald was an amazing wizard at one time or another. We both loved magic. We were both ambitious, too ambitious. When the darkness took root in him, I not only lost him emotionally but then I had to destroy him physically."

"I can't imagine the pain you went through," Harry said softly.

"Yes, well, it's partly why I was so hard on you. I wanted you to keep fighting. I wanted you to fight with all your being to make sure you protect the people you love at all costs so you wouldn't have to go through what I did. I felt for you that day here in my office after Sirius passed. I knew what it felt like to lose someone close and to not want to feel anything anymore."

Harry blinked away his tears and nodded. "His parents have him locked into a vow and we're trying to break it. Illegally."

Dumbledore sighed and nodded. "That's a great task you have."

"You don't seem surprised."

"That Lucius Malfoy would force his son into a vow to do exactly what he wants?" he said with a raised eyebrow. "No, of course not."

"I also…I took a risk and sort of bound my blood with a moonstone."

Dumbledore's smile faded. "Harry…that is a very dangerous risk. A moonstone's abilities are similar to that of the Elder Wand. They were not made for us to control or tamper with."

"I know! But I had to!" Harry exclaimed. "I had to get a vision of what to do next!"

Sighing heavily, Dumbledore nodded. "I understand, but you must be prepared for the consequences. That was one thing I don't think Voldemort ever thought he'd have to face. The consequences of splitting his soul like that. He is way worse off. When he dies he will be in permanent agony. The soul can only move on if it's complete, but it's not, if it's torn into shreds it will always be pulling, seeking completion."

Harry winced. "No wonder he's clinging on so hard. So…what should I do? You must know about Cyprian and what Voldemort's doing. How do I stop him?"

"It seems to me that you have to break the hold he has over Cyprian."

"He has a piece of Cyprian's soul!"

"Yes, but Cyprian's soul is in danger regardless. You need to break that bond. When Voldemort's connection is severed, he will be defenseless. Perhaps this is all a blessing in disguise. I can't say the consequences for you will be all right, but there is one thing."

"What?" Harry asked, leaning forward. Serenity was perched on the desk by Harry staring at them calmly.

"Since you have already bonded yourself to the moonstone, you can use it against Voldemort."

"You mean so he can't take over my soul when he tries the spell?"

"No," Dumbledore said shaking his head. "Voldemort will not attempt that again until he is absolutely sure it will work. He would not risk losing everything. I'm sure Voldemort will use Cyprian to try and persuade you to surrender to him. That would bring you straight to him since he is currently incarcerated. He has more control that way. When you are there, he is going to expect you to have some sort of defense. In order to bypass everything, he will no doubt be forced to use the amulet to create a barrier in the cell. He will trap you in there with him. When you are forced to stay there, unable to escape unless you bend to his will, sooner or later you will succumb to fatigue, hunger, thirst. He will use your weakness against you and when you're too weak to fight back, he will use the amulet to take a piece of _your_ soul. That way, he will always have control over your fate. After he puts a piece of your soul into his body, it will be easier for him to then take over your body completely as he will already have a way in. So if Kingsley tries to disrupt his process, he will take that piece of your soul with him to the other side, meaning your soul would never be complete and that piece would always tie you to him."

"So I would…"

"So you would ultimately end up in the same place as he is. Even if you're not in agony like him, because your soul would be still mostly intact, you will be trapped with Voldemort in that limbo forever."

Harry collapsed into a nearby chair. "So…if he can't win, he wants to make sure I'll suffer."

"Precisely," Dumbledore said sadly. "But you can stop it. He doesn't know you have the moonstone. I assume you haven't told Kingsley or Minerva or anyone else."

Harry shook his head. "Just Draco."

"That will work in your benefit, Harry. Unfortunately, it will mean tapping into the moonstone with all your might. And there could very well be consequences of that."

"Like…?"

"A power like that can corrupt you, or perhaps take years off your life. I'm not sure. You can use the same ability that Voldemort did to grab a piece of Cyprian's soul to extract that same piece. Using the moonstone's ability you can overpower the amulet, which has now weakened since Voldemort is weak and all the Dementor's powers he sucked into it is slowly draining. Although it would take time for it to become much weaker, I believe your moonstone would be strong enough to overpower the amulet at least long enough to get Cyprian's soul back. Once you have the soul, it's a matter of breaking the curse Voldemort placed on Cyprian."

"Do I need to destroy the amulet?"

"You need to retrieve the amulet. That is where the piece of soul is being stored. If you overpower the amulet, you can extract it from Voldemort's body but then you would need to use the moonstone's ability again with Cyprian in order to try to put the piece back. It is a very delicate process and that would require you using a lot of the moonstone's abilities in such a short span of time. If you wait too long after extracting the soul to put it back, it may never go back. So you must do it within five hours to be safe."

Harry nodded. "I'll talk to Kingsley right away then. There's no time to lose."

He turned around, reaching out to brush Serenity's feathers before he headed for the door.

"Harry," Dumbledore said, pausing as Harry turned around. "Happy birthday."

He smiled. "Thanks, Dumbledore. I promise, I won't let you down."

"You never do."

Harry left feeling sad but motivated. He immediately went to the Ministry to tell Kingsley the plan. After a few hours of meeting with Kingsley and the Order and other Aurors, they figured out how they were going to go about doing it. They had to wait for Voldemort to make the first move so that he believed that he was the one in control.

By the time Harry got home it was late. When he walked in the door he stopped suddenly. There were bright green candles floating above him, giving the place an ethereal glow. The fireplace was on too, blowing cool green flames. Harry stared around at the living room for a minute.

"Hey."

Harry turned to see Draco sitting up from one of the couches. He hadn't even seen him lying there because of the dim light.

"Hey," Harry said back softly.

"Where'd you go?" Draco asked.

The blond's tone of voice was soft and laced with concern.

"I met with Dumbledore and then Kingsley to go over a plan to stop Voldemort and hopefully save Cyprian. Where did you go this morning?"

Draco shrugged. "Had to run an errand. Uh, there's food in the kitchen."

Harry nodded and went into the kitchen. He grabbed a butterbeer and a plate of food. He went back out and laid on the other couch.

"So what's the plan?"

Harry explained the plan and realized afterwards how exhausted he felt. Draco was silent the whole time.

"I think I'm going to head to bed," Harry said, rising.

"Uh, before you go," Draco said, standing up. The blond reached for something and then approached him uncertainly. "Here."

Harry stared down at the small silver box that was in his hand. He glanced up at Draco who only met his gaze briefly before looking away. Upon opening it, Harry found an exquisite ring. It was gold but with specs of silver that shimmered like mica. The design of the ring itself was very intricate. It curved around his finger elegantly. The silver in it also curled into tiny intricate designs. It looked incredibly expensive.

"It's made from a Pegasus' golden mane. They're used in making certain kinds of jewelry," Draco said, pushing his hair away from his face. "The magic from their manes is supposed to help ease anxiety when a person's body gets too crazed. Makes them focus better or something."

Harry stared at it, twisting it around his finger and then gazed back up at him.

"Sorry I didn't plan a big party like you did for me."

"It's okay. I actually prefer just taking it easy this year," Harry said, smiling. "Thanks."

Draco nodded, looking relieved. Harry's smile widened.

"So, can I ask, why a ring?"

To his amusement, Draco's face flushed. He could tell even in the dim light. The blond looked away in embarrassment for a second.

"It's – you know – since you gave up your other ring to that Mystic plant," Draco said quickly. He seemed flustered. "Anyway, I'm going to take a shower. See you tomorrow."

The blond nodded to him and went up the stairs. Harry slowly climbed the stairs to his room, staring at the ring. When he got to his bed he lay down and raised his hand up to study the ring. A ring symbolized eternity. At least for muggles it was a symbol of wanting to be with someone forever. It meant more to him than Draco probably realized. The ring was soft and flexible but still looked like it was made of gold. It shimmered differently than gold though. Harry smiled to himself and rested his hand on his chest. He had to tell Draco at some point how much he cared about him. Would it scare Draco away? Harry changed for bed and closed his eyes. The ring glimmered in the moonlight shining through his window.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A few days later Harry got a message from Dimitri that he had a theory on why the plant-hybrid liked the muggle plants. Those plants had a particularly strong smell to them, a smell that probably helped the plant-hybrid blend in better. Dimitri wasn't sure if it ate the purple plants or not, but he suggested they use a spell to dull the fragrance of the purple plants which may draw the creature out. Harry told Draco the news and the two of them devised a plan to go back and try to lure the creature out again.

The flight there was in a tense silence. They were both nervous about the new development. If it didn't work, they didn't know what else to do.

"Okay. I'll use the spell and you keep a look out from high above," Draco said.

Harry nodded. This was Draco's mission so he let him take the lead. When they reached the area, Harry hovered high above Draco and watched him carefully. The blond waved his wand and a subtle mist spread across all the plants. Their color faded slightly and the sweet smell vanished. They both waited holding their breaths. Harry observed the area closely, making sure to keep an eye out for any type of movement.

"Anything?"

Harry shook his head. "Not yet. Maybe it's not in this area."

They both moved on to the next batch and did the same thing. They waited several minutes. Harry could see Draco's hand clutching his wand tensely. He was growing restless.

"This isn't working!" Draco exclaimed. "Are you sure Dimitri had it right?"

"Well it's just a theory. He doesn't really know how to study muggle plants, but it's the best shot we've got right now."

Draco cursed. "Not much of a shot if you ask me."

Harry clenched his fists around his broom. He had to bite his lip so as not to start an argument.

"Damnit! This stupid creature!" Draco exclaimed waving his wand erratically. The spell erupted around the whole area again. "Why the hell –"

Draco was suddenly cut off as something rammed into him, tossing him off his broom. He fell to the ground hard and his wand flew out of his hand.

"Draco!" Harry screamed. He flew down toward the blond.

"Don't get off your broom," Draco said, wincing as he tried to stand up. He was bleeding but it was only from scrapes. "Where did it come from?"

"I don't know! I didn't see anything!"

They heard a rumble nearby and Harry tensed, searching frantically. They both held their breaths.

"At least this is something," Draco whispered. "Okay, you go up high and –"

Something lunged from behind grabbing his broom and Harry was barely able to shout a spell to release his broom. Unfortunately, the second his broom was released from the grip, Harry was flung backward. His broom pelted out of control and he was spun all around until he shouted a shield spell. When Harry finally regained his balance, he saw Draco running as the ground erupted behind him.

"Draco!" Harry shouted, zooming down toward him. Harry waved his wand as he approached shooting an anti-illusion charm.

Just as he did so a black form revealed itself. It hovered over Draco with its massive body. It was like a rubbery trunk of a tree that could expand itself. It had strange yellow lines weaved into its strange almost leathery body. And out of the trunk sprouted a neck that grew a strangely shaped head with two eyes and a large mouth, which was opened revealing layers of black teeth. And it was opened directly over Draco. Harry managed to grab Draco's arm and zoom off with him just as the creature nipped at him. It dug into the ground and then wheeled around. Harry pulled Draco up onto the broom with him.

"What the hell is that thing?!" Draco shouted.

"Well you wanted to find it," Harry said. "Now let's catch it!"

Harry headed toward it again and he summoned Draco's wand so the blond could fire spells as they approached. The creature's body morphed, turning shades of purple as it tried to blend in with the plants making it harder for them to aim. The one spell that hit it only made it hiss in a strange growling way. It didn't seem to do much of anything. Suddenly the creature's black trunk began to expand and it began to grow taller and taller as it rose up to reach them. Arms and claws sprouted from it and it swiped, knocking their broom off course. Draco nearly fell off but he clutched around Harry's waist tightly.

"We've got to freeze it or something!" Draco exclaimed. "Dive in again but this time try to get it from behind. We can use a blinding charm first to distract it."

"Okay! Here we go!"

Draco sent out a blinding spell making the creature whirl its body around. Harry dodged to the other side, coming from the other direction as Draco then shouted a freezing charm. The plant's body began to slowly turn to ice.

"Yes!" Draco exclaimed.

They hovered above it watching as its trunk was covered in ice. Without warning, one of its claws broke through and struck their broom. Both of them went flying into the bushes and skidded across the ground. Harry groaned as he picked himself up. He was sure he sprained his arm in the fall. Glancing around, he saw Draco sprawled out a few feet away. Harry winced as he picked himself up and hobbled over to the blond. Harry reached out a hand and Draco groaned, turning over. His face was scratched and he had blood tricking down, but otherwise he appeared fine.

"Where did it go?" he asked in a raspy voice.

Harry turned to look around. The creature was nowhere in sight.

"It must've gone back into hiding. I hope."

"Fuck!" Draco hissed, slowly raising himself up. "We can't give up!"

"This thing is too much for us, Draco. We need help," Harry said. "I don't think we can trap it on our own. Look, for now it seems like it likes this place. We're not going to get anywhere this way so let's just go home. I'll send Dimitri a letter and see if he can help us."

"Why would he?! It's not one of his assignments," Draco spat.

"Because he cares about us and because I'm sure he'd want to study this creature. We'll tell him about our meeting with the Ministers from Scotland and Ireland. He'll think that's important. Now come on."

Draco glared at him but slowly summoned his broom. The both of them quickly flew home before the creature took another swipe at them. The first thing Harry did when they arrived home was write the letter to Dimitri. Draco limped toward the stairs.

"Is your leg hurt?"

"It's fine. Just a sprain," Draco said roughly.

The blond slowly walked up the stairs and Harry followed behind him. He grabbed some Dittany and then went into Draco's room a few minutes later without knocking. The blond was in the process of taking his clothes off but having a hard time due to it being painful. Draco turned when he entered. He had an irritated look on his face but Harry ignored it. Despite the expression on Draco's face, Harry approached him and started to help him get his shirt all the way off.

"Ow! Watch it!" Draco hissed.

"Sorry," Harry said.

After the shirt came off he helped him with his pants. Uncorking the vial, he dipped his fingers in the Dittany and began spreading it over Draco's scrapes. The blond tensed whenever he touched a painful spot.

"You think Dimitri will really help?" Draco asked after a minute.

"Yeah," Harry said. "I think so. It's a pretty amazing find. I doubt he could pass it up."

"True," Draco said. He sighed heavily. "Do you need some?"

Harry gazed at him when he turned to face him and nodded. Harry slowly pulled his shirt off and then his pants. He didn't have as many scrapes as Draco but when the blond touched his sore arm Harry hissed.

"Sorry."

"It's fine," Harry said quietly.

"We should probably take a shower. You know, wash all this dirt and blood off."

Harry nodded and slowly stood up. Draco approached his bathroom door and then turned. "You coming?"

Blinking in surprise, Harry watched as Draco walked into his bathroom. After a second, Harry followed behind him. When he entered the blond was already in the shower. Slipping his boxers off, Harry slowly lifted himself into the shower. Draco turned when he entered and handed him some soap. Very carefully they both washed the blood and dirt off. Harry went to rinse and felt arms around him.

"It's been a week," Draco said softly by his ear.

Harry's lips curled into a smile. "Yeah. I'm surprised you survived."

Draco snorted. He then kissed Harry's neck languidly. Sighing, Harry leaned back into the touch. He rested his body back against Draco's, leaning his head back on his shoulder. He tilted his head and Draco bent down to kiss him. His lips were smooth from the water cascading down upon them. Harry placed his hand over Draco's, the one wrapped around his waist. Draco then moved forward taking Harry's body with him until Harry's body was pressed up against the shower wall. Draco was still kissing his neck from behind and slowly Harry felt Draco's foot touch his. The blond placed his leg against Harry's and used his foot to push Harry's foot sideways. He did the same to the other side until Harry's legs were spread apart and Draco was nestled in between. Harry's cheek pressed up against the shower wall and his grip on Draco's hand tightened when he felt the blond at his entrance.

Draco easily slipped inside of him, groaning deeply. Harry moaned as he felt Draco enter him completely. The blond thrust his hips forward and Harry's lips parted. He closed his eyes as he felt Draco's hips move with the rhythm. Draco rested his body against his as he thrust languidly in and out. After a little while Draco pushed on Harry's legs to further spread them apart. He balanced himself by placing a hand on the shower wall by Harry's head and moved his pelvis up. Harry groaned breathlessly. Draco thrust again and again, becoming more determined with each thrust. Harry kept his eyes closed listening to Draco's moaning until he felt the blond's hand around his waist move lower. Draco grabbed Harry's member and began stroking it. Harry cried out and began moving his hips with Draco's. Harry felt his knees rubbing against the shower wall. Draco's stroking became faster and Harry's mouth parted as he moaned loudly. His orgasm hit him just before Draco's. The blond thrust in once more harshly before groaning and resting his body against Harry's. They both breathed deeply for a minute. Harry opened his eyes and Draco slowly pulled out of him.

Harry couldn't even describe how amazing it had been, especially after not having felt Draco's touch in a while. He couldn't believe the effect Draco had on him. He finally turned around to see Draco rinsing off his body. Harry stared for a minute wondering if it was the right time to tell him. His mind and body were exhausted and before he could even muster up the energy to speak, Draco stepped out of the shower. Harry turned off the water and followed suit. They dried and got dressed. As Draco headed for the bed, Harry hesitated and then started for the door.

"You can stay here if you want," Draco said. "I mean, if you're too tired."

Smiling, Harry turned back around and approached the bed. Draco slid under the covers and Harry joined him. Despite their failure today, Harry was glad Draco wasn't withdrawing from him. As he lay down he gazed at Draco who turned over on his side. Then he gazed down at the ring on his finger. He would tell him after it was over. Once they brewed the potion he would tell Draco exactly how he felt.

TO BE CONTINUED…

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**mochiusagi**: Hey! Thanks so much! I passed my test! WOOOO! Sorry for the LONG delay on this. There was studying, then chaos at work, then my brain decided not to function, and then I got strep throat. I'm feeling better now though and my juices are flowing! I will update asap!

**yoshi vega:** Aww, I'm so glad! I hope the suspense is still interesting. I promise it's coming to a head soon! Hehe! I'm sorry for the delay! Just needed a break and then got sick, lol! But I'm back! I will update asap!

**kistenbabe**: Lol! Well thanks for understanding! I did pass my test though, so YAY! I don't really want this story to end either. Can you tell I'm procrastinating? Lol! Don't worry there's still a lot to happen before the end, but sadly it will have to end at some point. Ahh yes, the consequences of using the moonstone…you will just have to wait to find out, muahhahaha! I know! I'm sure everyone's worried about the vow right now. It's coming to a head soon though! Sorry for the LONG delay! I will update asap!

**Rushumble**: Lol! Autocorrect is hilarious at times! But that's okay I understood what you meant. Hehe! I know lol! I usually re-read the last chapter before writing the next one so I remember where I left off. It's a lot to remember! And I passed my test, so studying paid off! :) Sorry for the super long delay! I will update asap!

**Cobalt Dreams: **I hope you liked the most recent chapters! Aww well thank you so much! Yeah a lot of people aren't reviewing but are reading the story, but that's okay because I have loyal reviewers like you! :) So that helps a lot! I'm so glad you think Draco's in character! He's such a complex character and rather stubborn so I do feel he's portrayed better in this story than my Captivation series. I'm so glad you love the plot too! That makes all the difference, lol! Hahaha! Well I'm so glad it made you laugh out loud even though you looked a bit insane. But that's okay because sometimes when I'm writing I talk out loud and I probably look just as insane to my roommate. Hehe! So sorry for the LONGGGG delay in updating. I normally don't take this long, but I had my test, then chaos at work and then I got strep throat. It's been hectic, but I'm feeling better now and my writing juices are flowing again. I will update asap! Thanks again!

**DancingHands**: I'm so glad you like this! I'm so sorry for the LONG delay especially since you said this was getting you through exams. YIKES! Hope your exams went well. I did end up passing mine so I'm happy! I don't have to take it again. :) I will update asap!


	29. Victory and Defeat

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 28: Victory and Defeat**

The next morning, Harry awoke to find Draco sitting at the end of the bed looking down at something. His back was turned to him. He was only in his boxers and his fair, porcelain skin was highlighted by the rays of the sun shining through the window. Harry smiled and leaned over to touch his shoulder. Draco turned around and glanced at him.

"What are you doing?"

Draco shrugged. "Just thinking."

Harry adjusted his position and scooted closer. "About what?" he asked hesitantly. He had been thinking a lot lately about many things, the vow mostly, and Voldemort, but also his feelings for Draco. He still didn't think it was a good idea to say anything until he knew for sure they wouldn't be pulled apart.

"The plant," Draco said quietly and Harry's shoulders dropped.

"Oh. Don't worry about that. I sent a letter to Dimitri so I'm sure he'll respond soon."

Draco nodded. "Yeah. Oh, by the way," he said, turning to smirk at him. "Remember I won the bet about not having sex for a week."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, so you get my broom for a month."

"And I get a favor," he said.

Sighing, Harry nodded. "What's the favor?"

Draco's smirk widened. "I think I'll save it for a rainy day."

With that the blond got up and walked to the bathroom as Harry glared at the back of his head. Harry finally got up and walked down to his room to get dressed. As he did so, he placed the moonstone around his neck and stared at it in the mirror. He wondered if anything had happened from using it before. His instinct was to ask Hermione, but considering how things were with his friends he didn't want to take the chance they'd decline to help him.

Harry slipped a shirt on over it, hiding the moonstone from view, and then he went downstairs to make breakfast. Draco joined him moments later.

"So, er, have you heard anything more from your parents?"

Draco paused in his chewing and then shook his head. "No. I doubt I will."

"You still haven't responded?"

"Yeah. I don't even know what I'd say," Draco said, pushing his bangs back.

Harry's back straightened when he heard something. He got up from his seat as Draco stared after him curiously. When he entered the living room, he saw a secure owl fluttering in the fireplace. Harry summoned it to him and opened it up.

"It's from Dimitri! He said he'll help!"

"Seriously?!" Draco exclaimed with a grin.

"Yeah, he said he's gathering the whole gang together," Harry said. "We're supposed to meet him tomorrow morning at work."

"Finally! We need to get this damn plant! It's the last ingredient for the potion."

"Yeah," Harry said, smiling. "And we've got plenty of time. Nine months."

"Yeah, but we still have to capture that plant, figure out what we need from it for the potion, then it takes three months to brew the potion properly," Draco said, wringing a hang through his hair.

Harry winced. "That's true. I guess I didn't think about that."

"And we have to do it right on the first try. We won't have enough ingredients left over to do another potion."

"Yeah," Harry said as his throat constricted. Having only one shot to do such a tricky potion was a lot of pressure. They had to get it right.

For the rest of the day, they tried to come up with a strategy to help take down the plant-creature. They couldn't agree on a specific plan. Harry lay awake that night running through strategies in his head.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Holding his breath, Harry waited in his position. He peered out. He knew where everyone else was, including Draco who was on the other side of the landscape. Dimitri had done some experiments with the muggle purple plants and discovered that they had a distinguishing smell. It was a little flowery, but mostly it was an herbal smell. He had charmed all the plants around intensifying their aroma. It was to draw the plant-creature out. He had been sitting there for twenty minutes without anything happening. That meant…

A blast suddenly hit the sky, flooding the area with sparkling dust swirling all over, getting over the plants, into the ground and creating a bubble around the entire area. It was Malik's spell – Plan B. It took him and Draco a long time to be able to draw the –

The ground suddenly began to shake. Harry put a hand down on the ground to steady himself. The creature was probably already territorial after he and Draco had invaded its territory and now that the spell was seeping into the ground, where it was probably sleeping, it did not seem happy. Harry braced himself.

Something erupted through the ground and Harry cried out when something wrapped around his calf and pulled him roughly, dragging him across the ground. He heard others crying out. Harry used a charm to float himself up, trying to get the vine off of him. As he rose up, he could see some of the others. Malik was cursing loudly and profusely as his entire body was being squeezed by a large black vine. Harry's eyes widened when he realized what the plant-creature had done. It hadn't even surfaced its body from the ground yet, but it knew exactly where everyone was – at least the people on the ground. Dimitri, Tess and Ronan were up in the air, but Draco, Asher, and Maisie were also on the ground with him, spread out. Harry knew that Asher and Maisie had never been out in the field before and neither had Ronan, since he was younger. Harry hoped with Dimitri supervising and between him and Draco who had experience with dangerous creatures, they would all be safe.

"Ahhhh!" Maisie screamed as the plant grabbed her up by her arm. Her wand fell to the ground as it rose her up.

"Malik!" Ronan screamed out for his brother. He abandoned his post to help him.

"Ronan get back!" Malik yelled. "I swear on Merlin's beard I'll bloody pound you if you get hurt!"

Harry spotted Draco zooming through the array of vines that were erupting through the ground. Draco shouted a spell and caught Maisie as she was released. Harry breathed a sigh of relief until he saw Tess and Dimitri descending. Asher came out as well trying to shoot at the vines to release Malik, Harry and now Ronan who was being yanked off his broom.

"Damnit!" Harry cursed. Just as he broke one vine from around his calf, another attacked him from behind. He just barely managed to dodge it.

He looked up to see Draco hovering nearby. The blond was watching him. Maisie was gripping tightly to him.

"Everyone! It's time for the charm!" Dimitri shouted.

Tess nodded and flew into position, just barely dodging a vine bursting up toward her. With help from Dimitri, Malik and Ronan were freed. Asher was now being attacked as he was the one mainly shooting at the vines. The second that they all were in position they all shouted the same charm. The ground began to deteriorate and transfigure into water just in the area of the bubble. If Dimitri was right, the plant-creature wouldn't be able to swim.

In a burst of fury the plant-creature rose up out of the water extending its vines toward each of them at the same time. It wrapped around each of their wrists as they held their wands.

"Keep your wands steady!" Dimitri shouted.

"Ow! It's squeezing tight!" Ronan exclaimed.

Malik glanced at his brother in concern.

"Malik! Don't move from your position!" Dimitri shouted. "We need to do the next spell!"

"Hurry!" Harry exclaimed. "It's forming more vines!"

"Ready!" Dimitri said as they all attempted to aim their wands directly at the plant-creature. "NOW!"

They all shouted their spells. A layer of paralyzing goo began to seep from each wand over the vines leading toward the monstrous body of the plant-creature. The plant's body tore as the mouth appeared and black teeth appeared.

"What the fu—" Malik shouted.

Their bodies began to shake from the force as the creature tried to break the spell.

"Keep steady!"

"Maisie!" Tess shrieked.

Still sitting behind Draco, who was currently unable to move with the vine around his wrist, Maisie turned her head with wide eyes. A vine was rising behind her. Tess broke her hold and shouted a different spell. As she focused her attention on the vine, pushing it back from Maisie, the creature's gaze settled on Tess and lunged.

"TESS!" Dimitri shouted. "Get out of the way!"

Tess shrieked, trying to turn in time. The creature snatched her arm in its jaws just as Dimitri appeared in front of it. The creature let her go and she fell to the ground. She wasn't too high but she was high enough. Harry saw her slump to the ground. He realized the Dimitri in front of the creature was a clone becvause the real Dimitri was still in his position holding his wand steady. Maisie pointed her wand over Draco's shoulder to take Tess' place. They all concentrated forcing their spell to spread over the entire body of the plant-creature.

The plant-creature made a horrible sound, thrashing about until it suddenly stopped moving.

"Don't move! It's not completely paralyzed yet!" Dimitri exclaimed.

Harry stared down at Tess who wasn't moving. He felt rage bubble through him and as the plant-creature started to struggle through the paralysis, Harry suddenly willed himself. Before he knew it, he felt his entire body tingle and suddenly his vision began to narrow. He felt like he was suddenly being zapped of energy, but before him a short distance away a clone of himself appeared. The creature lunged for him with the only body part it could move – its mouth. As it sank its jaw around clone-Harry, Draco shouted his freezing spell. He made clone Harry freeze and the frozen particles spread to the plant's mouth.

The plant's jaw froze and then its entire body stopped thrashing.

"We've got it! Again!" Dimitri shouted as they all concentrated again making sure the paralysis covered its entire body. The second it did the grip around their wrists loosened. They all broke away and Dimitri said a spell that began to transfigure the plant-creature into a large flower bud.

"I don't know how long the paralysis will last. Malik, Harry, Draco, you come with me to help me deliver it to the building. The rest of you call for St. Mungo's for Tess and hurry!"

Harry flew off to help Dimitri even though he was worried about Tess. He wanted to make sure she was okay. On the way there the plant tried to transform back but Draco reacted and froze it again.

"We need to hurry!" Dimitri exclaimed. "We're going to have to put it in the tank."

"The tank?" Harry asked.

Malik turned to him. "It's a specialized area for dangerous or vicious creatures. It temporarily suspends their abilities and forces them to be dormant for a while until we can figure out a way to contain it."

"With something like this that's so unknown I won't have any idea how to contain it safely until I start studying it," Dimitri said.

They all made it safely to the building and stuck it in the tank. The second it fell into the slimy goo, it transformed back and its vines twitched in response, but it didn't break out. Dimitri stared at the creature whose beady eyes stared right back.

"This one's going to be hard to crack, but it's a challenge I'm happy to take on," Dimitri said, smiling. "We did it!" he said, patting their backs.

Malik nodded. "Yeah, but do you think Tess is okay?"

"She's in good hands. Hopefully it's just a flesh wound and as long as this thing isn't poisonous," Dimitri said, staring back at it. "I'm going to work on studying it right now. Anything I find out might be beneficial for Tess too. You all go home and get some rest."

Harry and Draco nodded. As they flew off back home, Draco suddenly shouted with enthusiasm and Harry stared at him, startled.

"We did it!" Draco exclaimed. "We have the plant-creature!"

"Yeah, but…Dimitri's got it now and it's in a tank. I mean, how are we supposed to get a sample from it and how do we know what to take?"

Draco shrugged. "Dimitri will figure out what samples to take and we'll just take one of his. Stop worrying. The hardest part is done."

"No, the hardest part is destroying Voldemort and making this vow potion work."

Draco frowned. "What's wrong with you? We just did the impossible."

Harry sighed and rubbed his face. "I know, I just – I'm going to visit Tess. I'll be back in a bit."

"I'll come too."

"No!" Harry exclaimed as Draco froze. "Look, I just – I want to be by myself for a minute."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Fine."

With that, Draco wheeled around and disappeared upstairs. Harry exhaled deeply. He flew off to St. Mungo's. By the time he got there, she had been sedated. The doctor was just coming out of her room.

"Is Tess okay?" Harry asked after introducing himself.

The doctor sighed. "Yes and no."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Yes, because she'll live, but no in that there's some kind of toxin that's entered her body. It's basically…," the doctor hesitated. "It's destroying her powers."

Harry's eyes widened. "So she might…"

"Once she wakes up, she may or may not be a squib. We have no way right now of being able to stop it. Nothing we use has worked. We're going to keep trying. She's sleeping right now, but you can still visit her if you want."

Harry nodded. The doctor gave him an apologetic look and walked away. Harry walked into the room. Tess was bandaged up around her wrist. Through the bandage he could see the black goo seeping through. Anger flooded through him again. He knew what he had to do. He slowly approached her, looking around to make sure no one else was around. He reached out to put a hand over hers and then he closed his eyes.

"Moonstone, I need your abilities. Please let me see a cure."

He felt his entire body tingle. It turned into a burning sensation and he reached up his free hand to grasp at the side of his head. His eyes were burning and they began to water. Suddenly flashes came and as the images did, searing pain struck through his head. He tried to focus on the images. It was of the plant-creature. There was something about it. There were strange white buds that were forming on the plant's body. Inside of the buds were strange white spores. Harry cried out as the pain sliced through his head. He took deep breaths as the images stopped. He stood up shakily and put a hand out to steady himself.

Harry immediately sent a secure owl to Dimitri to tell him to look for spores and about Tess' condition. Hopefully Dimitri would be able to figure out what to do. All Harry knew was that the moonstone had showed him the spores for a reason. It had to be the answer to helping Tess. After that, Harry flew home. His eyes were feeling heavy. When he got back Draco was eating dinner.

"You want some?"

"I'm not hungry," Harry said, shaking his head then wincing.

"What's wrong?"

"I have a headache. I'm gonna lie down."

Draco watched him walk into the living room to lie down. Harry stared up at the ceiling. He was feeling strange. His vision was blurring slightly, going in and out of focus. Harry shut his eyes and winced. He barely registered someone touching his arm until he looked up.

"You want something to drink?"

Harry shook his head and slowly sat up. Harry blinked and put a hand to his chest.

"Draco, I can't breathe," Harry said, clutching at his chest.

"What?" Draco asked wide-eyed. "Do you want to go outside?"

Harry shook his head, taking shallow breaths.

"Come on, let's go to St. Mungo's," Draco said quickly.

He wrapped an arm around Harry's body and helped him up. He had to help Harry get on the broom behind him and used a spell to secure him. Harry gripped tightly around Draco's waist. Harry shut his eyes, trying to take deep breaths but he couldn't. They made it to St. Mungo's in record time. Harry could barely walk. The second they reached the waiting room, Draco called out for help. Doctors ran out and as they did so Harry just barely saw Hermione appear from behind one of them.

"Harry!" she exclaimed.

She rushed to his side and glanced at Draco. "What happened?"

"I don't know! He just said he couldn't breathe!" Draco exclaimed.

"Move aside!" a doctor exclaimed. He levitated Harry's body up and into a room. "Harry, I need you to tell me exactly what happened."

Harry clutched at his chest. The doctor turned to Hermione. "I need the anti-asphyxiation potion."

Hermione nodded quickly and dashed off toward the cabinet. She grabbed a vial and approached the bed. The doctor forced Harry's mouth open and poured it in. Within seconds, Harry felt his chest loosen.

"It's not his heart," the doctor said. "The rhythm sounds fine. Harry tell me what happened just before this."

"I…I used the…," he turned to Draco.

The blond's eyes widened. "Harry, you didn't!"

"I had…to help…Tess."

"What?!" Hermione screeched.

The doctor turned to her and gave her a look. Hermione quickly looked down.

"I need you to explain the whole situation for me. Please don't leave anything out."

Harry was in and out of consciousness while Draco explained at the moonstone.

"I don't have much experience with moonstones," the doctor said, sighing. "We'll just keep him overnight on observation. Perhaps it will pass. I will try to find someone who might know something. In the meantime, we need to have someone look over –"

"I'll do it!" Hermione exclaimed.

The doctor glanced at her and nodded. "All right, Ms. Granger. I'll check in after I see some other patients."

Draco nodded slowly and the doctor left the room. Harry couldn't speak. He was too tired and it was still hard to breathe so he kept his eyes closed but he could still hear Hermione and Draco.

"I can't believe he would risk such a thing!" Hermione exclaimed quietly.

"You have to admit, he doesn't have much of a choice. Voldemort doesn't seem to want to die."

"I get that, but Draco you have no idea what a moonstone can do."

The blond paused. "What can it do?"

"It's the reason vampires exist, for one!"

He heard Draco's sharp intake of breath. "So…Harry could become a vampire?"

"I don't know. I mean, it was a special set of circumstances that set that off, but there's definitely consequences. The moonstone is draining his life as he uses it."

"What do we do?"

Hermione sighed. "I need to do a little research. I know I came across moonstones briefly in my research and I remember reading about something else…I just need to take a look. Watch him while I go get my books."

"Okay."

Harry heard her leave. He forced his eyes open and turned his head. Draco stared back at him with a worried expression.

"Draco…," Harry whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well, you should be," Draco said firmly. "Hopefully Granger can figure something out to save your life."

"Yeah," Harry managed to get out.

After that, Harry didn't remember anything else until he woke up a few hours later. He heard familiar voices. When he opened his eyes he saw Draco sitting by his bedside sipping coffee.

"Hey," Harry said, sitting up. "I feel better."

"That's great. Too bad that doesn't reverse the fact that your life is being drained," he drawled angrily.

Harry winced. "Are you sure?"

Draco gave him a look. "You know how dangerous it is to use that!"

"I know but I had to do something! Tess – "

"You should've just let the doctors take care of her. Stop trying to protect everyone, Potter! It's impossible!"

Harry shut his mouth since the doctor walked in.

"Well, Mr. Potter, you seem better. Sadly there is no explanation for your condition and I can't say for sure if you're okay or that there won't be other side effects. My advice to you is to stay away from using the moonstone."

Harry nodded even though he knew that wasn't possible. He had to use it to stop Voldemort and save Cyprian. Once the doctor left, Draco wordlessly waited for him to get out of bed and put his shirt back on, because the doctor had taken it off to do some tests. They wordlessly flew back home. Draco didn't speak to him the whole rest of the day. He was so angry that he stayed in his room for the most part. Harry stared at the moonstone for a long time, wondering if he could defeat Voldemort without it. He couldn't sleep very well that night.

When he woke up the next morning it was to someone splashing water on his face. Draco was hovering above him.

"Wha – Draco?"

"Get up!"

Harry slowly got up and got dressed. He opened his mouth to ask why but knew the blond wouldn't answer him. So he followed him by broom to a café. He wasn't sure why he was there until he walked inside. He completely froze. There at a table was a sight he thought he'd never see. Ron and Hermione were talking together and they both looked up as they entered.

"What's going on?" Harry whispered, turning to Draco.

Draco slowly turned to face him and crossed his arms. "What do you think, Potter? We have to save you."

Harry turned back to his friends. His eyes locked with Ron's and at first Ron looked away, but he finally looked back. As they both walked toward the table, Harry was flooded with emotion. Draco was there and Ron wasn't running. His friends were here. To save him. Harry approached the table, nodded to Hermione and then turned to Ron. Harry smiled gently.

"Hi, Ron."

Ron gazed up slowly, glancing slightly at Draco before back at him. "Hey, Harry," Ron said quietly.

"Harry, sit down. We have a lot to discuss," Hermione said, staring at him firmly.

Harry swallowed. That didn't sound good.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**Sparkly moonlight****:** Sorry for the delay! I've been studying for my last written exam and also working a lot, but it's here! I will try not to take as long next time! Let me know what you think. :)

**crissy315****:** Lol! Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I'm glad you found the last chapter funny! Sorry this one was more serious. I promise there will always be humor thrown throughout to break up these melodramatic moments. :) Sorry for the delay too! I will try to update faster! And hopefully your anger about Ron will start to fade. Hehe! ^_^


	30. A Second Chance

_**Luminescence **_

**Author's Note**: Sorry for the delay! So many things have come up so it's been hard finding time to sit down and write. Don't worry I'm still going to keep moving along until this is finished. Enjoy and thanks for being patient!

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**Chapter 29: A Second Chance **

The only way to describe the situation was awkward. Harry sat there concentrating on his drink as he sat next to Hermione, across from Ron. Draco had pulled up a chair on the outside of the table sitting kind of next to him on one side and Ron on the other. They had all decided to order before having the discussion they were all dreading. The second their drinks arrived though, they all seemed to be preoccupied staring into them. Hermione cleared her throat.

"Harry, how many times have you used the moonstone?"

Harry swallowed. "Er, twice now."

"Did you feel anything the first time?"

"Just a little tired."

Draco remained staring down at his drink. Ron was trying his best not to look at Draco. He did on occasion lock eyes with Harry and then stare sheepishly down at his drink. Harry wasn't sure if that was because he felt guilty about blowing up at him, or if he was still uncomfortable with Harry liking Draco.

"So…er, what did you want to talk about?" Harry asked awkwardly.

Hermione sighed. "As I told Draco, the moonstone is definitely zapping your energy, but the way the moonstone works is much more than that. It feeds off magic and allows the person it feeds off to be able to get a burst of magic. The problem is that it's not a natural thing. It would be the equivalent of a muggle taking steroids or something to force their bodies to go overboard and do things they can't normally handle. There are consequences."

She glanced up at him and Harry nodded. "Dumbledore said the same thing when I talked to him."

Hermione and Ron gazed at him in surprise.

"So he was awake when you went in there?" Ron asked as Harry nodded. "What did he say?"

"Well he's concerned about Voldemort and what he's up to. He's concerned that Voldemort will try to take a piece of my soul to make sure that I can't ever move on and to make sure he always has a hold of me."

"With your weakening state, he could probably do that," Hermione said. "Harry, we have to solve this problem."

"But I feel okay now."

"Yeah, for now," Hermione raised her voice slightly. "Look, because the moonstone isn't natural, it's not just taking your energy or sharing your abilities. The more you use it, the more life it drains from you. Your magic is your life essence, essentially. Your energy is tied with your magic, which is tied to your life. If the moonstone keeps tapping into you like that, it can take years off your life."

"What if he doesn't ever use it again?" Draco finally spoke up.

Ron glanced at Draco only briefly before looking away. Hermione just sighed and shook her head.

"It doesn't matter. Harry bonded himself to the moonstone. Now the problem is that the bond is a blood bond, which means if Harry doesn't have the moonstone with him, he will feel the withdrawal effects. That means he'll be fatigued and maybe feeling sick if he's separated from the moonstone. But even when he's just wearing the moonstone and not using it, the moonstone is still linked to him and still sharing his energy and magic. So regardless," she said, glancing up at him sadly, "it's still draining your life, just more slowly than when you're using it."

Harry glanced down at his drink and his hands tightened around his mug. "So what can we do?"

He had a bad feeling there wasn't much they could do. According to Sirennia, she wasn't sure the bond could ever be broken, safely at least. Sirennia wasn't even sure she could necessarily save Cyprian by putting the piece of his soul back into him, once Harry retrieved it, but she was his only hope.

"Well I'm hoping this plant – a flower to be exact – will help. It's still experimental, but during my studies we read about how they've been trying to put in various potions and it seems to help people with weak immune systems so I'm hoping it can help keep you stable so that the moonstone can't suck enough out of you to affect your life or health at all. The only problem is, again, it's experimental and it's rare. It's also only been found in a few various parts of the world, namely St. Lucia and the Aogashima Volcano in Japan."

"What's St. Lucia?" Ron asked. He had been so quiet Harry didn't think he would say a word, especially in front of Draco.

"It's a sovereign island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. It's one of the Winward Islands, which if you know anything about muggle history," she said as Draco gave her a look, "it was named after Saint Lucy of Syracuse by the French, the island's first European settlers."

The three of them just stared at her. Hermione pursed her lips and then rolled her eyes. "Never mind."

"So we have to go get the plant?"

"The thing is the people researching it aren't just going to hand it over. They have very few samples to work with as it is. We need to go find our own," Hermione said. "I've taken a leave from work for a week. That should hopefully be enough time."

Ron nodded in agreement. Harry understood that to mean that Ron too had taken off dragon training.

"Er, is Negae going to be all right without you?"

"Charlie's looking after him," Ron said, glancing at him. "And the actual tournament doesn't start for a couple months so we have time."

Harry nodded and then glanced back down. "I'm sorry I'm causing you both trouble."

Hermione reached out a hand and placed it over his. "Don't worry, Harry. We're still your friends so we'll always be here for you."

Harry gazed at her with a smile and then glanced at Ron who nodded.

"Yeah, and we're used to you doing reckless things."

Harry cracked a smile. "Gee thanks."

Draco sat there awkwardly looking uncertain as to whether or not he should say anything. He was saved the decision by Hermione who cleared her throat.

"Well we will have to take a train first to get as far as we can and then do the rest by wizard car since it's such a long ways, and I don't think there's a train route that takes us to that exact area."

"We have a wizard car," Harry said gesturing between him and Draco.

"Great, thanks," Hermione said. "You should go home and pack some things. We'll meet at the train station in one hour."

They all sat silently for a split second before rising to leave. Draco was silent flying back so once they got inside Harry turned to him.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Draco stopped and turned, his bangs ghosting over his eyes. "You should be," he drawled. "You don't have to be the reckless hero, Potter."

Harry glared at him.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Look, Harry, I'm just saying that you could've asked me for help. I mean, after all we've been through –"

"What would you have done? None of us could do anything for Tess. No one knew what was wrong with her. If I hadn't, she could've died."

"That's not the point!" Draco exclaimed throwing his hands up.

"Yes, it is!" Harry snapped. "I wasn't about to risk her life."

"Yeah, well you didn't risk her life. You traded one life for another!" Draco yelled back. He then wheeled around and stomped up the stairs.

Harry's shoulders drooped. Draco was right. Even though he may have saved Tessa, he put his own life in danger. He should have known better. Now his friends were taking time off work and going on a long trip to find some rare plant to help him; a plant they weren't even sure would work. Despite feeling horribly guilty about making everyone worry and causing this, Harry was relieved to know his friends didn't hate him. Of course, that didn't mean Ron would forgive him. The red-head hadn't said much to him and had barely looked him in the eye. He was obviously still upset, or uncomfortable.

After packing, they took their wizard car to the train station where they had it boarded on the train in the storage compartment (which, of course, was charmed expand and incorporate everything without actually changing the size of the train). They all went into the same compartment. Draco seemed to hesitate before sitting down on the same side as Harry, although he made sure there was plenty of space between them. Ron and Hermione sat close together across from them.

Harry cleared his throat. "So Hermione, what's the name of this plant?"

"It's the Allyssium Flower. It's known to have healing properties, but it only seems to bloom in certain areas with certain conditions. This flower blooms mainly at night and is in areas with clear skies, because apparently it feeds off moonlight, as well as from the ground. It's said its roots have unlimited expansion abilities and can share nutrients with other plants around it." She sighed. "What's sad is that faeries are supposed to be the ones to pollinate it with magic so that its healing properties and other magical properties stay strong."

"Faeries haven't been around since medieval times," Draco spoke up.

Ron glared at him but thankfully remained silent because Hermione spoke up.

"True. That's because they were hunted and captured for their abilities. So now these flowers aren't as common and have to get the source of their magic through moonlight and anything else it can find, sometimes borrowing from old trees that have magical inhabitants in them."

"Wait so when you say faeries you mean the small tiny people with wings?" Harry asked.

All heads turned to him and Harry looked at all of them. "What? I'm just wondering."

"Seriously, Harry, even I know that one," Ron said.

"I thought maybe faeries were just a muggle myth. Pixies are the only ones close enough."

"They're real," Hermione said. "Or they were. They're nearly extinct now so they hide most of the time, but they are sort of little people. They do look a little different. Their eyes don't have pupils, just color, and they have pointed ears, but otherwise they look like tiny people. They haven't been seen for decades. They're a lot nicer than pixies. Anyway, once we get to St. Lucia it will be night time, but we might be too exhausted to go search tonight. There's supposed to be a hidden inn around there, which you can find with your wand."

Harry nodded and leaned back against his seat. A few minutes later a woman came in with a trolley of snacks and drinks. Hermione bought some tea and dragon chips (which were chips cooked with dragon's flame, which apparently made it taste really good). Ron pulled out a large sack of coins and was smiling widely. He bought a nettle juice, dragon chips and flaming pixie sticks (which were literally made from pixies and fried). Ron's eyes caught Draco's and Harry saw the blond's hands clench by his side. When the woman came over to them Harry declined, but Draco's lips curled into a smile as he also pulled out a sack of coins. He bought a nettle juice and the same things Ron did except also with chocolate dragon bites (which were a type of nut similar to a peanut found in certain magical bushes that blossomed, fried with dragon's flame and covered in chocolate. They were no bigger than a peanut either).

Harry could see Ron's ears turn red. Draco caught the red-head's eye and raised an eyebrow.

"Is something wrong, Weasley? If you wanted chocolate dragon bites you should've gotten some," he said with a smirk.

Ron sneered. "No, thanks. I don't eat dragon pellets. But you seem to have a thing for them."

The pun was not lost on anyone in the room, referring to when Harry told them the story of Draco getting slopped with dragon dung in the cave. Draco's eyes narrowed. Harry could feel the tension growing. Hermione cleared her throat.

"So Harry, how are you feeling?"

"Fine. Just tired."

"Did you eat something today?"

Harry shrugged. "A little."

Draco and Ron were oblivious to their conversation as each of them tried to inhale their food the fastest. Hermione just rolled her eyes and sighed. Harry closed his eyes. He didn't realize he had fallen asleep until he felt someone shaking him awake. Draco was sitting close to him with a hand on his shoulder. Hermione was peering down into Harry's face, but she was so close it startled him when he first opened his eyes.

"Well you don't look any worse, but you should probably not exert yourself too much."

Harry just nodded. They all left the train and Draco retrieved the wizard car from the storage compartment. It was almost worse being stuck in an even smaller space. Harry was in the driver's seat, although he let the car automatically take them to St. Lucia. Hermione and Ron were in back. Draco peered over at him from the passenger's seat.

"You think Dimitri found anything out with the plant yet?" he whispered.

Harry glanced over and shrugged. "Even if he did we'll find out when we get back."

Draco sighed irritably. "That's the last ingredient we need."

"Yeah but we don't want to rush anything. We know nothing about it so if we take from the wrong part of the plant…"

The blond gazed at him and nodded. "Yeah, I guess that's true. Even if Dimitri has found something out, how are we going to get a sample?"

"We'll figure it out. The plant's not going anywhere."

"It's just that the potion –" Draco stopped abruptly when he realized that Ron was leaning forward from the backseat to try to hear what they were whispering about.

The blond sank into his seat so Ron couldn't see him and stared out the window. Harry heard Ron whispering to Hermione. He sighed and stared out the window. It was going to be a long trip. After some time they began passing over beautiful mountains covered in greenery and deep blue bodies of water. When they reached their destination, they parked the wizard car in the tall trees and kept the invisibility mode on.

By the time they got to the inn they were all tired and moody. They had to park the wizard car in a large cluster of trees and kept it in invisibility mode. The entrance to the inn was at the base of the island's hilly mountain. On top of that it had started to rain just as they were getting there. They still got soaked before being able to use a charm to shield them. They entered the inn cold, wet, and tired.

"We need two rooms please," Hermione said, shivering.

The inn keeper stared down at them both and waved his wand to open his registry.

"We only have a split available," he said gruffly.

"A split?!" Ron exclaimed. "Why do you even have those useless bloody things?!"

The inn keeper narrowed his eyes. "You can always sleep out in the rain."

Ron's mouth opened and closed several times before he shut it firmly, turning red from anger.

"We'll take it," Hermione said with a sigh.

The inn keeper just grunted and waved his wand. The key to the room split into four so they each had a key. They all trudged up the stairs to the very top floor (probably the reason it was still available being up 8 flights of stairs). When they got there Harry finally realized why Ron was so upset. It was a double room, like he and Draco had to share once. There were two beds, one on each side of the room. Thankfully there was a divider in the center that they could pull all the way down so they could have privacy, but it didn't make the situation much better. Ron seemed to stare down at the floor as both Harry and Draco passed by them to go to their bed. Once they both reached the bed, Harry saw the divider move as it spread across the room blocking Ron and Hermione's side from view.

Draco just rolled his eyes, but he also seemed relieved. On their side they had a secret stairway that led to their own bathroom as well as downstairs since the entrance was now blocked from view by the divider. It was late so they all got ready for bed. Despite that they couldn't see Ron and Hermione, they could hear them whispering. It was so unnerving to know that they were right next to them that he was too afraid to do anything. It made it nearly impossible to fall asleep. A few hours later, just as Harry turned on his other side for the tenth time, he felt a hand on his arm. Harry sat up and blinked through the dark into Draco's face. The blond pointed and then got out of bed so Harry followed. They went through the secret stairway. Instead of going all the way down to the first floor, they walked down a hallway that led to the roof and into the cool outside breeze.

The sky was clear so they could see all the stars as well as the half moon shining down on them. They both sat on the ledge overlooking the beautiful mountainous landscape. Harry could see the body of water in the distance gleaming under the moonlight. In the cool air he felt like he could breathe better, although his chest still felt tight. Draco was silent for several minutes just peering out at the scenery. Harry turned to gaze at him and after a few seconds Draco turned toward him.

"I couldn't sleep," he said finally.

Harry nodded. "Me either."

"I'm aware of that," Draco drawled.

Harry shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"The same. It's not that bad, but I just feel drained right now. It's better than at St. Mungo's though," Harry said.

"If we can't find that flower, or if it doesn't work, we'll have to find something else against Voldemort."

Harry shook his head. "We won't know if it works until I use it again. I don't have a choice, but I promise to only use as much as I need to."

Draco pursed his lips angrily. "That's not saying much."

Harry sighed. "I know."

They sat there for a few more minutes until he felt Draco scoot closer to him. Harry turned and just as he did Draco leaned down. Their lips touched and Harry felt his heart skip a beat. Draco moved his hand around to the back of Harry's head and entwined his fingers in his hair. Harry leaned into the kiss. They broke away slowly and Harry opened his eyes. Draco's eyes appeared silver in the moonlight. Harry didn't realize he was reaching out to brush Draco's cheek until the blond blinked.

Draco's lips curled into a sultry smile. "Too bad we can't have sex."

Harry snorted. "Yeah, there's no way I'm even attempting that."

The thought of Ron and Hermione listening to them just made him cringe. After a few more minutes, they both finally went back into the room. Harry eventually fell asleep.

When morning came Ron and Hermione were already up. Ron had left the room to get food. Draco appeared disheveled and Harry could tell he was going to be grumpy. Sighing, Harry decided to order them some food so they all at least wouldn't kill one another. When their food arrived, Ron had returned with his and Hermione's food. The divider had been pulled away, after Hermione had knocked quietly on it to make sure they were up.

Hermione explained the plan to them as they ate about the areas they were going to check for the flower.

"I thought it only blooms at night," Draco said.

"True but we can still find them now while it's light out and then wait for them to bloom. It might take some time to find one."

They all followed Hermione's lead. There was no point in taking the wizard car through the thick terrain so they had to walk on foot. Ron cursed every time they had to go through thick brush. Draco walked in front of Ron a little ways and pulled back a branch, releasing it before Ron had a chance to get out of the way. It smacked him in the face and he yelped. Harry and Hermione turned around to see Ron tripping over his own feet holding his face and Draco smirking.

"You bloody asshole!" Ron bellowed, lunging toward Draco.

Hermione whipped out her wand and said a spell that caused Ron to slam into air, like an invisible forcefield that wouldn't let him reach Draco. The blond just stared at the red-head with a smug look.

"Both of you stop it!" Hermione exclaimed. "We're all tired and irritable and we don't need to make things worse right now!"

"We've been walking for over an hour! When are we going to find this stupid thing?!" Draco exclaimed.

"You're the one that's stupid!" Ron exclaimed.

Draco glared at him. "Not considering what you look like right now."

Ron glared, trying to fix his messed up hair and wipe the red marks on his face that the tree branch had made. Harry was too tired to argue or try to intervene. They walked on for another hour before they all became too hungry to do any more searching. They went back to the inn for lunch and decided to wait until night to try again.

"Why is it so steep?" Ron whined.

Their wands were the only light source through the pitch black.

"Because it's a mountain," Draco drawled.

"I wasn't talking to you!" he snapped.

"Then don't talk aloud," Draco retorted.

Hermione made a sound of annoyance as they made their way toward the top.

"They usually grow in higher places to be closer to the moon when they blossom so we may have more luck finding them at the top," Hermione said.

They finally reached the top and they stared out at the dark land before them. The stars and moon were glistening and they could make out only certain things. There was a cool breeze that swept over them. They waited up there for some time, but they couldn't see anything blooming. After a while they finally gave up and trekked all the way back down the mountain. Hermione used a charm to make it easier going down so it didn't take as long.

When they got back Ron closed the divider almost immediately and Harry sighed and slumped down on the bed.

"You okay?" Draco asked quietly.

Harry shrugged. "I guess. I don't know. I was hoping that it would get easier with them."

Draco glanced at the divider. "You can't force them to accept it."

"I know. I was just hoping after a while they'd realize I'm not crazy."

Draco raised an eyebrow in question. Harry gave him a look.

After a minute, as Draco slid into bed next to him, he spoke. "Maybe we'll have better luck tomorrow."

"Yeah," Harry said quietly.

Although he managed to sleep better, he was still tired in the morning. Another long day of searching passed with no luck. There was a point when Draco made a comment about all of Ron's complaining and they got into yet another heated argument. Hermione summoned cold water and splashed both of them. Harry tried not to laugh at their expressions.

That night after Ron and Hermione closed their divider Draco gestured for Harry to follow him. They went downstairs toward the dining hall area where some guests were sitting and eating or drinking.

"We should do some investigating," Draco said.

Harry nodded in agreement and let Draco take the lead. They sat down by this older wizard who was summoning shapes of different creatures and things in the air with his wand. He seemed to be slightly intoxicated.

"What brings yous all here?" he said, slurring the last word.

"Do you know anything about the Allyssium Flower?" Draco asked.

The man glanced at both of them before gesturing for them to take a seat. They sat across from him and watched him float his glass off the table.

"The Allyssium, you say? Aye, I know about it."

Harry leaned forward. "Do you know where we can find one?"

The man nodded. "I heard tales of them growing in the farthest mountain, nicknamed here Spirit Mountain. Nobody dares go into the cove there."

"How come?" Draco asked curiously.

The man looked around and then leaned forward. "It's haunted," he whispered.

"By what?"

"Dunno. Spirits, inferi, creatures of the night. Whatever it is people who go looking either run away terrified or don't ever come back. Me thinks that no soul has entered in at least five years, not since those kids went missing."

"What kids?" Harry and Draco asked, almost simultaneously. They both glanced at one another and smiled.

The man smiled at them coyly for a second before his expression turned grim. "Kids went down to the cove as a dare, hearing all the superstitions. You know how kids can be. Young wizards probably about twelve or thirteen went down there. Out of the four of them, three of them were never found. One of them was found badly wounded, scarred, and without his wand. He was so terrified that it took him years to talk. He really couldn't ever explain what had happened, but he did say somethin' was down there. Somethin' unnatural."

He then leaned back in his seat. "Of course no one knows what happened. It could've been a spell gone awry or a trick of the light or just being attacked by a simple creature whose territory was invaded. I wouldn't advise going there though. Bad juju. Besides, what's even stranger is the fact that the opening to the cave isn't visible until nighttime when the moon is shining. Otherwise trying to get up that mountain is impossible. It's too steep and because of all the magical plants covering it, spells and charms don't do much good. The only way is through the side of the mountain. It's covered in moonlillies."

Draco nodded in understanding although Harry was still confused as to why moonlillies would be significant to the opening of the mountain.

"Thanks for your help," Harry said, nodding.

The man gave them a nod and went back to doing simple charms in the air. When he and Draco went outside for some privacy, Draco turned to him.

"Well looks like we're going there."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "And you say _I'm_ reckless."

"You are. And we really don't have a choice."

"It could just be a rumor."

Draco shrugged. "Maybe. But it's the only lead we've got right now. We just need to figure out where that mountain is."

Sighing, Harry nodded. They managed to find a map in the lobby and they found an area where there was an X through it to signal not to go there. In very small letters were the words _Spirit Mountain. _They got back to their room and went to sleep.

The next morning when Ron and Hermione were awake and eating breakfast, Harry decided to bring up what they found. They both pulled out the map and told them what they were told.

"A haunted mountain?!" Ron sputtered with food in his mouth.

Draco made a face of disgust. "Close your mouth, Weasley. That's more horrifying than any haunted place."

Ron stopped chewing and glared at him.

"I don't know," Hermione said, biting her lip. "That sounds dangerous. What if there's nothing there?"

"We won't know until we try, but we're not getting anywhere," Harry said, rubbing his forehead.

"You okay?" Hermione asked.

"Just a headache," Harry said, blinking. "I think we should just try it out. We're a lot more competent than a bunch of kids going out for a dare. We've faced Lord Voldemort."

"That's a good point," Ron said.

They all glanced at one another nervously.

"All right then," Hermione said, inhaling deeply. "Let's go at dinner time so we can get there by nightfall."

Once the plan was set they realized they had all morning and afternoon. Ron and Hermione left to do what they said was shopping, but Harry figured it was probably so they wouldn't have to awkwardly stand around each other all day. Draco had made the suggestion to go exploring since they had nothing better to do. They both went into town and found a hidden entrance to a bunch of village shops including one for brooms. They both went inside and began looking around. Draco was staring at things quietly, perhaps a little too quietly. Harry approached his side.

"Are you okay?"

The blond turned to look at him. Their faces were inches apart and Harry could see that his eyes weren't as bright.

"I'm fine."

Harry gave him a look. "I know you don't like to talk about stuff, but it worries me when you don't give me any kind of idea what's wrong."

"Stop worrying. You don't need to be stressing yourself out."

Harry just rolled his eyes and sighed, leaning forward to look at an advanced broom kit.

"Just don't die on me."

Harry turned suddenly, but Draco was walking away. He stood up slowly and his chest tightened. Draco had no body right now. No family, no friends. Harry was a little bit in the same boat. He somewhat had his friends, but really they both only had each other. If anything happened to either one of them…

Harry swallowed. He was being selfish. Not thinking about his own welfare - it wasn't the same anymore. He wasn't fighting the same war, the war that he thought he'd have to sacrifice himself for the greater good. He didn't have to sacrifice himself, or anyone. He wouldn't.

After shopping around, they stopped for tea and snacks at a restaurant later and went on a broom ride to explore the beautiful landscape before heading back. Ron looked up when they entered and his eyes went toward their hands, which were so close they were brushing up against one another. Harry didn't even notice until he saw Ron looking. They all headed out in the wizard car.

"We can only go so far as that entrance that guy was talking about," Hermione said. "So we can park the car on the mountain, I hope."

"Where?" Harry asked, peering out into the darkening sky. "I think I see the ledge he mentioned. I'm going to try to land it."

"Please don't kill us," Ron said.

Draco turned to glance back and snorted in amusement. Ron had a death grip on the handle by his seat. Harry managed to just barely land it although there wasn't much room on the ledge.

"From here we walk," Hermione said, getting out.

They all stood in front of the mountain wall. The sky was almost completely dark as the sun dipped beyond the horizon. The stars were already coming out. Just as the man had said, the light from the moon shone upon a word that glimmered against the rock. Hermione whispered it while waving her wand and the wall opened up to reveal a passage. She glanced back at them and nodded. She went first with Ron behind her followed by Harry then Draco. The passage was tight and damp, smelling of wet grass and other things. It curved around, following the body of the mountain as they headed towards the center. They stopped suddenly when they came to a ledge. The path they were on was narrow and it circled around going up against the wall of mountain. Below them was a dark hole of the center of the mountain. They couldn't even tell how far down the bottom was, but none of them wanted to know what might be lurking down there.

"Be careful," Hermione said. She put her foot up on the start of the path and began slowly working her way up.

They all followed behind her slowly.

"What was that?" Ron whispered.

They all stopped, holding their breaths. There was a strange clickety sound. They couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"Just keep moving," Hermione whispered.

Out of fear, Ron started moving too fast. His foot caught in a hole in the narrow path. His body shook and he yelped when he began to lose balance. Draco whipped out his wand faster than the blink of an eye and caught Ron before he could fall off the edge. Ron's body was pushed back up and the red-head turned toward them, thinking Harry had saved him. When he saw Draco holding his wand their eyes locked. Ron cleared his throat awkwardly and nodded quickly in thanks. He then began following Hermione again. Harry turned and gave Draco a small smile. The blond shrugged and put his wand away.

"He should be happy, because it would've made my day watching him fall."

Harry snickered quietly. "Stop that."

Ron glanced back at them and Harry immediately coughed to hide his smile. That only made Draco snicker. Ron didn't look upset. He just kept walking. They finally made it to the top, but that's when they heard something move from somewhere down below.

"What the hell is down there?" Ron whispered.

"Probably just a serpent or something," Draco said. "I'm sure it's nothing."

Ron just glanced at him uncertainly as if not wanting to believe that this could be an easy mission. Harry too found it hard to believe that the myth about the place would stem from nothing.

"Okay. It looks like there's another passage in here," Hermione said, gesturing for them to follow.

They all started inside the narrow passage which now started going down. This passage was much darker so they had to turn their wands on.

"Hey," Ron said, shaking his wand as the light began fading. "What's going on?"

Hermione stopped and stared down at her wand. "I think it's some sort of magical ward, maybe a plant or something growing in the mountain that's counteracting our spells."

"Oh great!" Ron exclaimed. "And what happens if we're attacked?"

"Relax, Weasley," Draco said, "there's four of us."

Ron whipped his head around. "You have no idea what's in here. We could be providing a decent meal!"

"Worrying about the worst isn't helping," Hermione said. "Just feel your way toward the exit and be careful."

Ron cursed under his breath and put his hand on either wall. They all started walking forward slowly, trying to adjust to the dark. Suddenly Hermione shrieked.

"Hermione?!" Ron exclaimed. "What the HELLLLLLLLLLLL!"

"Ron!" Harry exclaimed.

Both Hermione and Ron's shrieks echoed but started getting farther away. Harry inched forward, feeling out for his friends while Draco grabbed Harry's arm so they wouldn't get separated. Harry's foot stepped forward and suddenly slipped out from beneath him. He fell backward into Draco who lost his footing and they both fell and suddenly began sliding down the path, which turned into a steep slide.

"There's no railing so try not to fall!" Harry exclaimed.

Harry was lying partially on Draco's legs as they continued to curve around the corner. They were suddenly thrown forward when the slide ended. Draco landed on top of him and Harry grunted.

"You're heavier than you look," Harry said.

"Shut up," Draco said, climbing off him.

"Ron? Hermione?" Harry called out.

"In here!"

Harry followed Hermione's voice toward another entrance. They had to duck down but when they came out, they suddenly stopped as the cave they entered had phosphorescent colors glimmering on the walls. It was bright enough that they didn't need their wands.

"It looks like there's several tunnels," Hermione pointed out.

"Yeah, one of which could lead to death," Ron grumbled.

"Should we split up?" Harry asked.

"NO! That's what's going to get us killed!" Ron exclaimed.

"I agree with Weasley," Draco said, as they all turned to stare at him in surprise, even Ron. "What? It's not smart to split up. We could lose the ability to use our wands."

"Okay, well which way?" Hermione asked.

"I think," Harry said, staring up at the wall, "that most people would chose the path that has the phosphorescent marks."

"So we should take the dark unknown passage?" Ron asked.

"Exactly," Draco said smirking. "Whatever is in here wouldn't expect that."

"Or is hoping for that," Ron argued.

"Let's just try it," Hermione said, sighing. "Stick close to one another."

They all walked into one of the dark tunnels. They felt their way, making sure to feel the ground as well, down the passage. A sound echoed that sounded like something skittering on the ground. Ron jumped and grasped Hermione. They all stopped momentarily. They began moving forward again and suddenly the floor began moving.

"What the hell is going on!?" Ron shrieked. "S-something's beneath us!"

"No the floor is sinking!" Hermione exclaimed. "Hurry!"

They all started running as quickly as they could even though the floor began sinking beneath them. Harry's legs sank down until it reached his thighs and he struggled to move forward. Hermione looked up to see vines.

"Grab the vines!"

They all reached for them. Draco had to reach for the one near him and help Harry try to pull himself up. Unfortunately, Harry's strength was pretty weak so Draco jumped down to lift Harry up. The floor was bubbling up toward Draco's neck and Ron and Hermione saw Draco helping him.

"Hurry Draco!" Hermione exclaimed.

Harry reached out his hand while clinging to the vine with one and Draco grabbed his hand with one and grabbed the vine with the other, lifting himself slowly out of the goop. He had to grab Harry's clothes too as he climbed up higher. Suddenly something rose up out of the floor and tried to latch onto Draco's leg.

"What the hell is that?!" Ron exclaimed.

"Of course! It's a Hypnotic Zard," Hermione said. "It can affect things around it to manipulate its prey."

"Prey?!" Ron exclaimed.

"It's very territorial! It probably didn't kill those missing children itself. It doesn't actually eat people, but if it's protecting a nest and this is its home, it could've caused similar things to happen to the kids. They probably died because they panicked and couldn't figure out a way out. The Hypnotic Zard won't kill people but they do bite and their bites can cause hallucinations and dehydration, which I think is what that one surviving kid had. He probably escaped somehow through the creature's traps."

"Come on. I see an opening," Hermione said, climbing up on the vine.

Draco shook his leg and the Hypnotic Zard lost its grip. It sank back down, hissing at them.

"How large is it?" Harry asked, only seeing the purple eyes staring at them.

"They can grow up to ten feet," Hermione said.

They all climbed up the vines to the ledges there and made their way toward another tunnel that led out to another large area, only this one was covered in paths and vines and a bunch of greenery inside. There were a bunch of crystalized areas as well of minerals and things growing out from the walls. They saw exactly what a Hypnotic Zard looked like. It was almost like a very large overgrown lizard. It had a small mouth and head, it was covered in black scales but it had six feet and an enormously long tail. Its purple eyes along with the purple dots on its back made it looked like something out of the dinosaur age. When it opened its mouth a clickety sound like what they heard before came out. They could see several large purple eggs. There were at least two of these creatures, but they could all see a second nest and they knew at least one of the others was in the passage they just came from.

"Just don't look them in the eye and don't go anywhere near the nests," Hermione said. "We need to prove to them that we mean them no harm."

"Look up there!" Draco said pointing. "Those are the flowers!"

Harry followed where he was pointing and saw on a top ledge where there was an opening in the mountain, a crack in the side that let the moonlight in from the holes, and that moonlight shone over a batch of flowers. They were in bloom and shimmering subtly. There were only four of them, but Harry noticed there were other areas of the cavern that had holes in the top. There were other areas, some along the ceiling and others in harder to reach ledges way on top that were blooming flowers showered in moonlight.

"I don't think we can reach any of the others," Hermione said.

"But this path goes right near one of the nests," Ron whispered.

"Just bow your head as you're passing and they shouldn't attack," Hermione said.

"Shouldn't?" Ron squeaked out.

Draco rolled his eyes and walked forward. "You can always stay here."

Harry nodded at Ron as he passed by him. Ron muttered under his breath and followed behind them. Hermione led the way. They walked along the path that led from one side, up high, toward the others, overlooking the bottom where the two Zards below stared up at them. They were very high up and the path was not very wide so they had to be careful. As they neared the other ledge the path passed right by another nest that was on another ledge just feet away. A Zard was curled around the eggs and straightened up as they approached. Hermione immediately bowed her head down and stared at her feet as she walked slowly by. Draco followed suit with no question. Harry hesitated and glanced back at Ron, giving him a slow nod. Ron just nodded quickly, looking rather pale. Harry glanced downward at his feet and began walking. Hermione and Draco were almost at the ledge, but suddenly the Zard was in front of Harry blocking his path. Harry stopped, seeing the Zard's feet but dared not look at it in the eye.

"Harry why are you stopping?" Ron whispered, staring at his feet.

"It's in front of me," Harry whispered.

"Harry, it probably senses the moonstone's abilities on you," Hermione whispered. "Just don't move. Ron you can go passed."

"No thanks," he said.

"Fine. Both of you stay there. We'll get the flower," Hermione said. "Okay, Draco, this flower is very fragile so just be careful. We have to preserve the root. I'm going to use a spell."

While Hermione and Draco were figuring out the flower, Harry was standing as still as he could manage as the Zard bent toward him and began sniffing him. Its nose rose up toward Harry's collar bone where the necklace with the moonstone was hanging. Even though it was beneath his shirt the Zard seemed to sense it and the second its nose brushed against it, it made an angry sound. It butt its head suddenly toward Harry's chest, but just barely pressed against it before the moonstone reacted, throwing the Zard back into the wall. Harry and Ron's heads both shot up instinctively. The Zard hissed and began to shake its head as it picked itself back up. The others down below began making angry noises.

"Hermione, hurry up!" Ron exclaimed. "Harry just pissed it off."

"It wasn't my fault!" Harry exclaimed.

"Got it!" Hermione exclaimed. She suddenly halted. "Oh boy."

They both turned around and Ron shrieked and jumped back, grabbing Harry as he saw another one blocking the way they came from.

"We need another way," Draco said.

The other Zard had regained its orientation and was opening its mouth at them in a threatening way.

"Harry, they're afraid of the moonstone. Hold it out in front of you," Hermione said.

"He can't use it!" Draco exclaimed angrily.

Hermione narrowed his eyes at him. "I'm not stupid, Draco!" she said hotly. "He's just going to hold it out, not use it!"

"Okay, everyone just shut up!" Ron exclaimed. "They look very angry and your arguing is not helping!"

Harry put an arm in front of Ron and then moved in front of him. He took the moonstone off and held it in front of him. It shimmered a bit and even though it didn't glow like it did when he used it, as he approached, despite the hissing and noises from the Zards, they began backing away. Hermione and Draco quickly followed and the Zard jumped in front of them so Harry yelled at it, turning around to show the moonstone to it. It moved in a circle before jumping off the ledge and going over to its eggs. Once Hermione and Draco were safely behind him, they all moved forward as Harry cleared the path. The Zards hissed angrily as they passed. The second that they got into the passage and the Zards didn't follow, Harry gestured for them all to continue and he stayed in back keeping them from following as he backed away.

The one that had trapped them previously was hissing from somewhere in one of the tunnels but Harry just kept holding the moonstone out.

"Are we lost?!" Ron exclaimed once they were out of that passage.

"It changed the tunnels," Hermione said, looking both ways. "We'll just have to try one."

"We're never going to get out of here alive!" Ron said, grabbing his face.

"You are the most useless person ever," Draco snapped. "How did you manage to help defeat Voldemort? Did you just sit there and whine until he couldn't take it anymore?"

Harry choked on a laugh and Ron wheeled around to give him an outraged look. Harry just shrugged innocently.

"Just keep walking, not talking," Hermione snapped. "Or else I'm going to let the Zards have you all."

The three of them turned toward her. The look on her face made them all turn back around. They tried to hurry out. Draco nearly collided into a piece of rock and Ron burst into laughter. Draco cursed under his breath but thankfully didn't retaliate. When they reached a place where they could use their wands again, Harry used a tracking spell connected to the car, which was a nice perk of the wizard car. A jet of light streamed from his wand toward the car and they followed it out.

"We made it!" Ron yelled, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Hurry! We've got to get back before the flower dies so I can brew it!" Hermione exclaimed, tapping Ron on the head to get him moving.

They all hurried into the car and drove off. Harry's shoulders relaxed when they were safely in the air.

"Well that wasn't so bad," Ron said.

Draco slowly turned around in his seat and gave the red-head a look that read 'you've got to be kidding me'.

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence. Harry was feeling more drained. By the time they got there, it was past midnight. Hermione immediately went to the bag of stuff she bought earlier with Ron while they were out and began brewing a potion. Harry decided to lie down since he was so tired. Ron decided to reward himself with a butterbeer. Draco stayed by Harry's side, but he was also watching Hermione curiously. After some time, he went over to observe what she was doing. Ron was lying on his bed. The divider wasn't open so they could all see each other. Ron was sipping his drink and watching Draco who was watching Hermione.

Harry dozed off for a while but he was shaken awake a few hours later. Hermione had a vial in her hand. She told him to drink it. Harry downed it quickly. It had a surprisingly pleasant aftertaste, it was sort of flowery but also sort of sweet.

"I hope it helps," Hermione said. "We may not know for a while or until you use it again."

"Do I have to keep taking it?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. These flowers are rather potent. If they don't work the first time, they won't work at all."

"So if it does work he never has to take the potion again even if he uses the moonstone?" Draco asked.

"Well…no. If he uses it again, he'll most likely need another vial. I made two just in case, but we should save it."

"I'd really rather not have to go get those flowers again," Ron said.

Draco glared at him. "You don't have an ounce of bravery, do you?"

"I said I'd rather not have to, I didn't say I wouldn't!" Ron snapped.

"Shut up, both of you," Harry said. "I'll save the vial for after Voldemort and if I have to take it again, I will."

"And if it doesn't work?" Ron asked.

"We'll worry about it then," Harry said.

Hermione nodded in agreement and yawned. "Let's get some sleep."

They all were so tired that they fell asleep right away. Harry felt more rested in the morning, but wasn't sure if the flower was working yet. However, when he got out of the bathroom, he saw Hermione sitting on the bed with an envelope in her hand with a worried look on her face. Ron was leaning over her reading and Draco was trying to peer over her shoulder at a distance.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Hermione swallowed. "Harry, it's Cyprian."

Harry's heart skipped a beat. "What happened?"

"He's getting worse. If he dies, Kingsley thinks that Voldemort will have enough strength to break free."

Harry's jaw clenched. His fists clenched by his side as well. "We won't let him."

"Harry, you're still recovering. We don't even know if it's working."

"There's no time! It's now or never," he said. "I have the other vial. It will be okay, but if he breaks free it could mean another war in the future. And I know we're all tired of war."

They all looked down. He could see it on all their faces. It was just like the night they knew Harry had to go out into the woods to Voldemort to be killed. They knew it was inevitable.

"All right. Let's do this," Hermione said, nodding at him.

Ron nodded as well. Draco glanced at them and then he gazed at Harry and nodded too. Harry looked at all of them, feeling his heart swell at the thought that things might actually work out okay, if their plan worked. Taking in a deep breath, Harry nodded.

"Owl Kingsley back and tell him we're on our way."

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**TO REVIEWERS: **

Drarry4eva: Heyyyy! Yeah, I know he can be stupid sometimes, lol! That's why he has Draco there to smack him over the head, hehe! OMG I forgot about the moonstone in vampire diaries, except that in that case it turned out to not be magical at all, lol!

Magical Witch: Hi you! I'm glad you're back! I'm back too, lol! It's been taking me a lot longer to update lately and I'm sorry about that. Yeah poor Harry. Him and his damn Griffindorness, right? Hehe! But yes, it's cute when Draco takes care of him. Harry's had to take care of him a little so it's only fair, right? I will update asap!

Guest: Awww thanks! I'm so glad you liked the update! Sorry it was a bit shorter than my chapters normally are. It was taking me forever to finish it (in between studying and shadowing and working, ugh!) so I just left it at the worst possible place for you guys. But I'm getting better! It's getting somewhat close to the end and I don't want people to have to wait forever. Yeah, Harry was being stupid. It's just so hard when you have a power at your disposal and you feel helpless…it's very tempting. Hehehe! Don't you worry now, Harry is not going to turn 50 or 80 or look like that. He may die, but other than that, no worries. :) You'll just have to have faith that everything will eventually work itself out. And I'm not the kind of author who wants to leave their readers disappointed or sad by the end of the story. No worries, I completely understood your ramblings, hehe! And I will update asap!

Bellatrix: I know, that's very true. It's not that Harry didn't expect it, he did. That's why he didn't want to tell Ron because he knew everything Ron had been through and knew that his friends weren't seeing the side of Draco that he was. So he understands where Ron's coming from, but at the same time, he wants his friends to trust his judgment. It's like being between a rock and a hard place, lol! I will update asap!

Guest 2: Aww thanks! I'm so glad you liked it! I promise to update soon! :)

whitebunnyluigi: Hey Mac, thanks soooooooooo much! I'm so happy to hear you're really enjoying the story. I promise to try and continue updating within 1-2 weeks until the end of it so that you're all not hanging on by a thread. And yes again, Harry's Animagus form is an arctic fox. :) I hope you continue to enjoy the story and I will update asap, promise!


	31. The Last Horcrux

_**Luminescence**_

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **_So sorry again for the delay guys! Gosh, life has been busy. Juggling two jobs, because I'm gradually switching careers. In the next few months I'll be full time in my new career. Also I've been working on my original book series to try and get that going soooooo hehehe, yeah, this was put on the back burner for a bit. I promise I'm going to finish it. My goal is to have this finished by either Christmas or New Year. ENJOY!

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**Chapter 30: The Last Horcrux**

The drive back in the wizard car was mostly in silence. Draco sat in the driver's seat this time and Harry sat in the passenger's seat. He was staring out the window deep in thought, trying to picture the plan in his mind. They had to get that amulet. They had all discussed the plan in detail multiple times during the car ride there. Harry knew Kingsley would be there with Aurors and backup. Kingsley didn't specify who the extra backup would be, but he had to take precautions in case Voldemort attempted to escape.

They finally arrived at the Ministry and Kingsley and the others were waiting.

"Harry, it's good of you to come," he said. "The reinforcements are on their way and should be here shortly."

"How's Cyprian?" Hermione asked.

Kingsley sighed and shook his head. "We've frozen his body, but even so his life is still being drained, just more gradually. As long as that pendant is still active, his life force will be drained completely."

"What happens then?" Ron asked.

Draco stood off behind them with his arms crossed, watching silently.

"I'm afraid we've figured out that Voldemort doesn't need Cyprian alive to benefit from the piece of soul he's taken. The piece of soul now has its own lifeforce, just like how Voldemort can survive with just the tiny remainder of his soul. If Cyprian's body dies, his soul will be incomplete and he'll be stuck in limbo forever bound there and unable to move on so long as the piece of his soul is here with Voldemort."

"Will Voldemort continue to get stronger?" Harry asked.

"Not after Cyprian dies, but up until that point he'll be able to hold on with Cyprian's soul and continue to hang on so long as he's got it. It keeps the remainder of his soul, which has been damaged by performing the ritual several times, from completely disintegrating."

"That bastard," Ron snarled. "Hasn't he done enough?!"

"There's one more thing," Kingsley said. "Voldemort is using threats. He says he won't drain the boy completely to kill him if you go to him."

"No way!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Hell no!" Ron shouted at the same time.

"That's his plan! He wants to get Harry's soul!" Hermione said.

"He won't be able to, at least not very easily," Harry said. "Not with the moonstone and he still doesn't know about it. I think I can use it to my advantage, make him think he's winning and –"

"Are you bloody insane?!" Ron exclaimed. "That's the most idiotic, dangerous plan I've ever heard! Voldemort wants you to go in there, which means he has a full proof plan to make sure you don't get out!"

"We don't have a choice!" Harry shouted. "Cyprian's dying and we're his only hope."

"Harry," Kingsley said quietly, "I know how much you want to protect everyone, but Ron has a point. Voldemort is using this against us, knowing that we want to save every life. He's taking advantage of your humanity in the hopes of getting what he really wants. His goal was never really Cyprian, it was always you."

"I know, I know," Harry said, rubbing his forehead. "We have to at least try to save Cyprian. If I can't get the pendant from Voldemort, then…then I can't. I won't let him get me, I promise. There's no way in hell I'd ever let that happen."

Kingsley nodded. "All right. Once the reinforcements get here, we'll start Phase One of the plan."

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Harry walked into the large dark room. It was a room in isolation deep under the Ministry. There was one small area surrounded by what appeared to be glass but it was charmed with many spells to keep from breaking or being manipulated in any way. Taking in a deep breath, Harry approached. He could see a figure inside of it. As his footsteps echoed, Voldemort turned around to face him. Half his face had already completely peeled, leaving black flaky skin in its place. The other side was still sickly gray and peeling.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort hissed. "I knew you'd come."

The grin on his face sickened him, but Harry hoped Snape's potion was still working. He was quite sure that it was a potent enough potion that it worked until you took the antidote. Harry approached the cell.

"Let Cyprian go."

Voldemort laughed. "Not until you surrender to me."

"How is that any different? If you get my body, you'll just literally use me to kill everyone I love. And do you really think that the Minister would let you leave in my body?"

"He'll have no choice if he wants you to live."

"You'll be me so I won't be myself anymore," Harry argued.

"Your soul will still be inside. Our souls will just…intermix," he said, grinning. "Now come inside, Potter. This is your last chance to save Cyprian."

Harry gripped the marble in his hand tightly. As he walked forward it allowed him to enter the cell. As soon as he did the marble disintegrated in his hand, leaving him trapped with Voldemort. Slowly Voldemort stood. Harry could tell it was hard for him to move.

"Are you alone?"

"Yes. Now let Cyprian go. Give me the piece of his soul that you took."

Voldemort sneered at him. "You'll have to come closer."

Harry clenched his jaw. "I don't trust you."

Voldemort's eyes glistened. "If you want to save Cyprian, you have no choice."

Harry hesitantly stepped forward. His heart began to pound. Every hair on his body was raised. He approached until he was inches away. He could see the top of the amulet sticking out from the robe Voldemort was wearing. The second Harry's eyes latched onto the amulet, Voldemort lunged at him with surprising speed. His fingers dug into Harry's chest and he felt an enormous, painful shock all throughout his body. Harry cried out and collapsed to his knees. Voldemort moved his face right up to Harry's.

"Cyprian's soul isn't the one I want. And now you're mine," he hissed.

Harry's chest tightened so painfully he felt like he couldn't even inhale. Voldemort was trying to pry a piece of his soul out of him. After Harry's painful cry, the others appeared, hidden by advanced charms so Voldemort wouldn't sense their presence. Kingsley, Ron, Hermione, Draco, other aurors and a familiar face – the Minister Skyla. She appeared with her hair tied in a long ponytail wrapped in a glittering band, but with a stern expression on her face.

Voldemort laughed coldly. "No matter," he hissed. "Potter is mine."

Harry could feel his energy draining as Voldemort began to suck it out of him. He could see Voldemort's peeling skin looking slightly better.

"You promised," Harry whispered.

Voldemort sneered. "Even if I release the piece of Cyprian's soul, you'll never get it back inside him."

Harry cried out as he felt something pull inside of him. Voldemort's amulet began to glow and Harry knew it was his chance. Voldemort was going to attempt to put Harry's piece of soul into the amulet.

Kingsley, Sky, Ron, Hermione, Draco and several other aurors all held their wands at the cell to keep it stabilized so Voldemort couldn't escape. Even though the pain only lasted seconds, it was the most excruciating pain Harry had ever felt, even compared to the Cruciatus curse. Voldemort was attempting to use the last of his strength and power to take a piece of Harry's soul, since he didn't have enough to do the ritual to take over Harry's body. Without warning the moonstone hidden beneath Harry's shirt glowed brightly. Voldemort hissed in fury and surprise as it blinded him.

"Now Harry!" Kingsley shouted.

Harry lunged for the amulet. His fingers dug into Voldemort's chest as he grabbed it, yanking as hard as he could. Voldemort hissed in pain and then grabbed Harry's wrist painfully.

"You think you can stop me you worthless brat! You have no idea how to use a moonstone!" Voldemort snarled.

Voldemort's amulet began to glow and painful shocks went through Harry's hand and up his arm. He shut his eyes and tried to hold on. The cell around them began to waver as both Harry's moonstone and the amulet released surges of power.

"It's shattering!" Sky exclaimed.

"Everyone in formation! Shield charms!" Kingsley shouted.

The cell barrier disintegrated and all of them encircled them with their wands out creating a shield barrier.

"You can't sustain that forever, Kingsley," Voldemort hissed.

Voldemort dug his fingers deeper into Harry's chest. Harry cried out, struggling to hold onto the amulet.

"Hurry, Harry!" Hermione shouted, closing her eyes as her wand wobbled.

Harry shouted out as the amulet began to burn his skin, feeling like white hot flames. He concentrated hard on the moonstone allowing it to take over. He felt his whole body tingle.

"You will never survive using the moonstone, Potter!" Voldemort snarled. "You are not strong enough! You are not powerful enough and even if you succeed in destroying my amulet, I will still watch you die!"

His whole body felt like it was on fire, but the pain began to fade. Glancing down at his__hand he saw his veins beneath his skin begin to glow. Voldemort too looked where he was staring and then glared at him so menacingly that his whole body shook as he tried to break free. Voldemort was using the last of his strength and the energy he zapped from Harry to activate the amulet in order to break the barrier and kill Harry in the process.

Hermione yelped as she almost lost her grip on her wand.

"Stay strong!" Sky yelled to them.

Voldemort's hungry gaze landed on Sky. "When I break free, I will tear you apart and make all your Aurors watch."

Rage flooded through him and Harry suddenly found himself ripping into Voldemort's chest. Voldemort screamed in agony as Harry reached inside and felt for the amulet. As his hand reached for it, he felt the power trying to push him back. Voldemort was using the last of his strength – Cyprian's life – to try and stop him.

"I don't need that boy anymore!" Voldemort yelled, his red eyes boring into Harry's. "I will use the last of his life to take yours!"

Voldemort began to break free. Already Ron was barely able to stand and Draco's arm was also shaking.

"You can do it! Don't give up!" Kingsley yelled. "Just think of everyone Voldemort has hurt, your loved ones."

"You are all weak! That's why you will never truly succeed," Voldemort hissed coldly.

The spell broke, erupting into a million bright pieces. Kingsley, Sky, Ron, Hermione and Draco were all thrown backward by the force. Harry's hand was still inside Voldemort's chest. Voldemort wrapped his hands around Harry's throat, sneering into his face.

"I will enjoy every moment of your last breath, Potter," he hissed.

Harry's throat was completely closed off and he gagged as Voldemort squeezed his neck tightly.

"HARRY!" Hermione exclaimed.

Voldemort used the amulet to produce a shield around them so that they couldn't reach Harry.

"Come on Harry!" Kingsley shouted.

Voldemort laughed coldly. "Your hero is helpless. None of you are a match for me. Now watch as I finally take the last Potter after all these –" Voldemort's words were suddenly cut off as the moonstone glowed even brighter, making Harry's entire body glow.

Voldemort screamed in agony as an eruption of white magic cascaded over him. The grip on Harry's throat tightened in response, cutting off his oxygen completely.

"Harry!" Draco exclaimed.

"Let the barrier fall!" Kingsley exclaimed.

"WHAT?" Ron bellowed.

"Just trust him, Ron," Sky said.

They all released the barrier.

"Sky, we must help Harry," Kingsley said.

She nodded. They both held out their wands and Voldemort screamed in agony as his arms were ripped from Harry's throat. Harry looked to see that both Kingsley and Sky were using their wands to keep Voldemort in that position.

"Hurry, Harry!" Kingsley exclaimed, struggling to hold him.

Voldemort screamed and thrashed in fury. Harry tried to grip the amulet but it was too deeply embedded into Voldemort's chest.

"You'll never retrieve it, Potter!" Voldemort snarled. "And no amount of magic can force it out! It's resistant to spells and charms!"

Harry grimaced. His eyes narrowed at Voldemort's sneering face. There was one thing he could try. It was the only hope. Harry's anger surged within in. He could feel his entire body erupt in tingles. There was a slight burning sensation. His chest began to tighten and it made it harder to breathe, but he kept focusing. He needed all his strength back. Concentrating hard like he had done before he willed his body to transform. Harry's eyes snapped open, glaring menacingly into Voldemort's shocked face. Harry lunged in his arctic fox form, his sharp teeth sinking into Voldemort's flesh. Voldemort screamed in pain, attempting to break his hold from Kingsleys spells. Hermione, Ron and Draco had to come and help Sky and Kingsley to keep Voldemort in place as the amulet began to glow, making the entire floor beneath them tremble. Harry snarled and clenched his jaw down further. He could feel stale blood entering his mouth. He felt his teeth around the amulet and suddenly lunged backward. He heard the ripping of bone and flesh as Voldemort hissed loudly, gurgling with pain. Harry's body was thrown backward and when he stood on all four feet he had the amulet in his mouth, with black blood oozing out as well. Voldemort's eyes turned scarlet red and Sky and Kingsley both shook violently while trying to restrain him. All his friends were there, struggling to keep Voldemort under control.

"Create a new barrier!" Kingsley shouted to them.

"Go Harry!" Hermione exclaimed. "You don't have a lot of time!"

Harry stared up at his friends, unable to communicate in his fox form. He stared at them all. His eyes roved over to Draco who was also struggling to help create a new barrier around Voldemort. Harry hesitated for a second and then dashed off, feeling his heart ache at leaving them all there. He raced out of the Ministry until he got outside. He changed back, feeling a bit shaky, and summoned his broom. He barely had time to think. He raced off to St. Mungo's. When he arrived Cyprian's parents were there by his bedside. Harry barged in, startling them and the doctor.

"There's not a lot of time!" Harry exclaimed. "I need to try to save him."

"Oh, Harry," Cyprian's mother sobbed. "Can you save him?"

"I don't know, but I have to try, but I have to take him out of here."

"Where?" the father asked.

"There's no time to explain! I'm sorry!" Harry exclaimed. He began to levitate Cyprian's body.

"That's not a good idea!" The doctor exclaimed.

"It's okay," the mother said, holding up a hand. "We trust Harry."

Harry nodded to them and levitated Cyprian's body out to the car. He then flew to the forest. When he landed several centaurs came out and surrounded his car. He levitated Cyprian out.

"I need to see Sirennia!"

"You're bringing a sick boy here?!" one centaur exclaimed, stomping his hoof in the ground. "Your illness may transmit to Sirennia. We cannot allow that!"

"I said let me through!" Harry shouted.

His body began to emit a glow and the centaurs stared at him in shock. Tinyen came out and saw Harry.

"Let him through. Sirennia promised to aid him and she always keeps her word."

The one centaur growled angrily but didn't stop Harry as he followed Tinyen to Sirennia, who was standing by the white tree.

"Harry," she greeted calmly.

"Sirennia, I have Cyprian and the amulet."

"Place him beneath the tree."

Cyprian was so pale he looked ghostly and his veins were all too noticeable beneath his skin. He was taking on a slight graying color. Harry levitated Cyprian beneath the white tree. Sirennia approached Cyprian's body.

"You must place the amulet on top of his chest."

Harry slowly set the amulet down on Cyprian's chest. Sirennia nodded and bent her head down, examining Cyprian's body.

"You must use the moonstone to carefully extract the amulet by cracking it open, but be careful not to use too much power and destroy the amulet entirely or you will destroy his soul as well."

"Gee, no pressure," Harry muttered.

Harry bent down next to Cyprian. Sirennia placed a hand on the tree and immediately the white roots came from beneath the ground, wrapping around Cyprian's body. Harry took a deep breath. Cautiously, he placed a hand on Cyprian's forward and closed his eyes, concentrating hard on the moonstone. He reached up a hand to feel it but it was no longer there.

"The moonstone?!" Harry gasped. "Where is it? I just had it!"

Sirennia cocked her head curiously. "I feel a power emitting from you."

"But it's not here!" Harry exclaimed, holding up the empty chain. "I had it when I was fighting Voldemort, just before I turned into a fox and –"

"You transfigured with the moonstone?" Sirennia asked.

Harry turned to her and nodded.

"It must be inside your body now. It has fused within you."

Harry's eyes widened. "It's inside me? Are you sure?"

"Your body glowed," Tinyen said.

Sirennia nodded toward him and turned back to Harry. "Yes. Transfiguring into a nonhuman shape while wearing the moonstone would cause it to also transfigure with you. As your body began to morph, it was absorbed into you at the same time. You can still use it to save him. It is just now coming from within you."

Harry bit his lip and nodded. He closed his eyes again. He felt his body tingle as it had before. Despite that he was tired he knew he had to do this. Cyprian was running out of time. He could feel his chest tighten and it made it harder to breathe. Suddenly there was an intense feeling of pressure followed by a massive shock throughout his body. Harry gasped. His body was rigid but he could still feel the power consuming his body. He could feel his body glowing.

As the intense feeling took over he could feel every inch of his body tingling and even burning. It wasn't too painful, but it was also a strange, almost out-of-body experience. He concentrated only on freeing Cyprian's soul. Then suddenly his chest loosened and he could breathe deeply again. Harry's heart began to slow and he was able to move his body again. He glanced down at Cyprian's body to see that the amulet was glowing. Suddenly it cracked in half and the glowing immediately ceased. Harry gazed at Cyprian's face hoping that it had worked.

"Why isn't he waking up?" Harry asked.

"Patience," Sirennia said, stepping next to Harry.

"Do you think it worked?" Harry whispered.

"Only time will tell now," Sirennia said.

Harry placed a hand on his own chest. "So what happens now that it's in me? Will it kill me?"

"If your body was meant to reject you, you'd be dead," Sirennia said calmly. "It seems that the moonstone has bonded with you, more so than I have seen before."

"Can it still take years off my life?" Harry asked.

Sirennia gazed at him. "That I cannot say. Only time will tell."

"I should get Cyprian back to the hospital," Harry said.

The white roots released the hold on Cyprian, sinking back into the ground. The amulet had disintegrated and was quickly turning into ash. Harry levitated Cyprian's body up and headed back toward the wizard car. The second Harry sat down he could feel the aching in his body. When he arrived at St. Mungo's, Cyprian's was placed back in bed and given nutrient potions to help stabilize him. Harry raced back to the Ministry. He ran inside as if he was on fire and nearly crashed into an Auror. He breathlessly asked about the Minister and was taken up to his office where he found Ron, Hermione, Draco, Sky and Kingsley all alive and looking worn out.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, running up and hugging him. "You did it!"

"I couldn't have done it without you guys," Harry said, smiling.

"How you do you feel?" Hermione asked.

"Tired," he said, shrugging.

"Where's the stone?" Ron asked.

"Er…I'll explain later. Cyprian's doing better, or at least he's not that sickly gray color, but Sirennia said it will take time to see if it's worked or not."

"Well you've done all you could," Kingsley said.

Harry looked at all of them, glancing back and forth. "So…is he dead?"

Kingsley smiled. "Go see for yourself."

Harry walked down the hallway to the elevator to take it down underground. The room was nearly empty and quiet. There was a shimmering translucent area in the distance. Harry slowly approached it to see that it was a shield. Harry stepped closer and saw a crumpled form leaning up against the wall.

Voldemort's eyes bored into his. Black blood dribbled out of the corner of Voldemort's mouth.

"You will never…defeat me," Voldemort hissed.

Harry's eyes narrowed. He glared straight into Voldemort's eyes. "I already have."

Voldemort's eyes flickered angrily, but he could do nothing in his weak state, especially without the amulet. Harry then walked out and went back to the others.

"It may take a little bit of time for him to die, but he's definitely on the way there," Kingsley said, patting Harry's back. "We finally did it."

"It's over!" Hermione exclaimed, jumping into Harry's arms.

Harry winced but then nodded. "Yeah. I hope so."

"How are you feeling? Do you need to take the other vial?" She asked as she pulled away.

Both Ron and Draco walked over to him as well.

"I'm okay. I mean, I feel a little tired, but I actually feel okay."

"Well the giants will be pleased about this outcome," Sky said, smoothing out her robe before crossing her hands in front of her. She stood very elegantly posed even though several of her blonde bangs came out of her ponytail and were now ghosting across the sides of her face.

"You were amazing, Harry. Your parents and Dumbledore would be very proud," Kingsley said.

He smiled. "We all were."

Sky smiled along with the rest of them.

"Well you certainly couldn't have done it without me," Ron joked.

Hermione smacked him playfully. Draco stood there silently and Harry turned to glance at him. Draco caught his eye and Harry smiled at him, silently thanking him.

"I'm going to go to St. Mungo's to keep an eye on Cyprian. I'll let you know if anything changes," Hermione said. "Harry, you might want to get checked out too, just to be safe."

Harry just nodded tiredly. Harry, Draco and Hermione went to St. Mungo's while Ron went home to brag to his entire family about Voldemort's defeat. The doctor checked Harry out but found nothing physically wrong with him. He was given a healing potion and Hermione told him to take the last of the Allyssium potion she had made. Harry was silent the entire ride back home. After they landed the Ministry car, the car automatically flew itself back to the Ministry. Harry tiredly took the Allyssium potion.

"You feeling okay?" Draco asked.

Harry shrugged. "Better than I thought I would for defeating Voldemort."

Draco nodded slowly. "Maybe you just need to rest."

Harry nodded and walked up to his room. He didn't even remember getting into bed. He woke up the next morning still tired, but less sore. He realized that they had only five months to break the vow. He got up and went downstairs to find Draco already in the kitchen.

"Hey," Draco said. "You feeling better?"

Harry smiled. "Yeah. How about you?"

Draco shrugged. "Fine. I just hope it's really over with Voldie."

Harry laughed. "Yeah. It better be."

Draco stared at him. "So what happened to the moonstone?"

Harry bit his lip. "Er…yeah. About that. It kind of got absorbed into my body when I transfigured."

"_What_?!" Draco exclaimed. "What the bloody hell does that mean?"

Harry shrugged. "Sirennia said she's not sure. She's never seen a moonstone bond like that."

Draco pursed his lips. "You better be careful. Being inside of you might mean it can take years off your life more easily."

"I'll be careful. I'm not planning on fighting any more Dark Lords," Harry joked.

Draco rolled his eyes and put food on two plates, levitating one to him.

"Thanks," Harry said.

They went into the living room to sit on their respective couches to eat.

"So we should go to Hellebore today and see if we can collect a sample," Harry said.

"Don't we have to wait for Dimitri to study the thing?"

"Yeah. Well, we can see if he's made any progress at least."

Draco made a sound in his throat. He seemed to agree because he got dressed after they ate. They both headed out on brooms to Hellebore. They headed for the garden area, hoping nobody was around. To their surprise, Dimitri, Malik, Asher, Maisie, Ronan, Liaeda, and even Tess were all there.

"Tess!" Harry exclaimed.

"Harry!" She grinned, bounding over to him and embracing him tightly.

"How are you feeling?"

"Much better! I hear I have you to thank for that. Sorry for putting you through so much trouble."

"It's not your fault," Harry said, smiling.

"How's the battle going?" Dimitri asked. "Is there any progress?"

Draco and Harry exchanged glances.

"You could say that," Harry said.

They all stared at them curiously.

"We kicked his sorry ass," Draco said.

Tess, Maisie and Liaeda all gasped at once.

"You mean he's…," Maisie trailed off.

"He's a goner," Draco finished.

"Bloody hell!" Ronan exclaimed. "You guys are seriously incredible!"

"I know," Draco said, smirking.

Harry rolled his eyes in amusement.

Everyone started clapping and cheering. Dimitri came over and gave them both a hug, to Draco's dismay.

"We need to have a celebration!" Dimitri exclaimed. "And for more than just that. We've made some progress on our newest edition."

He wiggled his eyebrows at them. Both Harry and Draco exchanged smiles.

"What did you find out?" Harry asked curiously.

"Some pretty awesome stuff," Malik said, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulders.

Malik glanced over at Draco, saw the look on his face, and quickly took his arm off Harry.

"Like what?" Harry asked.

"Well we've only gotten one of its spores to open it. The entire plant is still dormant," Dimitri said. "But from doing tests on one spore and the left over tooth you collected, I've determined that it has very unusual properties. Are you ready for this?"

Both Harry and Draco nodded.

"It has the ability to _neutralize magic_!"

Harry's mouth parted. "What does that mean?"

"It's amazing! It means that it can neutralize anything! Curses, spells, you name it! But I've theorized that in combination with some sort of healing or revealing plant, such as the rare Gava Bush or the Mystic plant, that it could potentially neutralize anything magical."

"So…even say an effect from a curse?"

"Yes!" Dimitri exclaimed. "At least that's the theory. This has so much potential!"

Draco cleared his throat. "Do you have any samples you're working with?"

"Absolutely!" Dimitri exclaimed. "Come. Follow me!"

They followed him up to the platform and everyone gathered around at the strange shimmering pearl-like liquid.

"This came from one of its spores. There's not much so we haven't been able to do a lot of tests but we're trying to figure out how to activate more spores. If only we can get it out of its dormancy. I'm sure it will just take some time."

Draco glanced at Harry who gazed back at him.

"We'll help you," Harry said.

"Thanks boys," Dimitri said, smiling. "There's really no rush. Oh! And I should have another assignment for you in the next day or two."

"Let me try," Harry said.

Harry went down and they all were watching him curiously. Malik and Ronan had gotten off the platform and back down to the ground level to watch him more closely. Harry stepped into the garden, brushing past some plants that skittered out of his way. He approached the dormant plant that was much larger than any of the other plants. It was moving up and down as if it was breathing, a slow deep rate as though it were sleeping. Harry concentrated and allowed the moonstone's abilities to flow through him. He could feel his body emitting a glow.

"Whoa!" Malik exclaimed.

"How's he doing that?" Ronan asked.

Harry reached out to place a hand on the plant. Immediately the plant reacted as if it was being shocked. It trembled violently and several tentacles reached out toward him. On one of the tentacles a spore appeared.

"Harry! Use your wand to carefully extract that spore!" Dimitri exclaimed.

Harry nodded and slowly extracted the spore with his wand. As he levitated it up to Dimitri Harry again placed his hand on the plant. It trembled and the tentacles began to wrap around his body. The eyes of the plant began to open and Harry saw the black teeth emerge. A single spore appeared on its other tentacle and Harry quickly extracted it, placing a protective bubble around it. He glanced over his shoulder seeing that Dimitri was busy with the spore sample. Malik was the only one still watching him. Harry moved his body so he was blocking the tentacle of the plant. He then levitated the protected spore into his pocket. As soon as he did that, however, the plant's tentacles began to wrap around itself and its eyes and teeth vanished. It turned a slightly pale color and then was still.

"Aw, Harry killed it," Ronan said.

Malik smacked him on the side of his head. Harry turned to glance at Dimitri who just smiled.

"Don't worry, Harry. I believe it's just gone dormant again. I'm sure it will just take time to get it to open up again."

"How'd your body glow like that?" Ronan asked.

"It's a long story," Harry said. "I can tell you at the celebration."

"Aw, man," Ronan complained.

"Well I'm sure you boys are tired from your victory," Dimitri said, walking over. "I will let you know when the celebration is! Get some much deserved rest."

Harry smiled quickly and nodded. He and Draco then said their goodbyes to everyone and headed back home.

"Did you get it?" Draco asked finally when they were back home.

"Yeah. There was only one."

"I'm sure we don't need a lot," Draco said.

Harry levitated the bubble out of his pocket. The spore was still completely intact.

"It's better than nothing," Draco said. "Let's hope it works."

"We can start brewing the potion."

"Yeah. Dimitri said this stuff's pretty potent, so we probably only need about half of the spore's liquid."

"That's great!" Harry exclaimed. "We can use the leftovers with the mystic plant."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Why?"

"Remember what Dimitri said about the combination? Of neutralizing curses and their effects? I'll bet it will help Cyprian get better instantly."

Draco shrugged. "I guess so. It's just a theory, you know."

"It couldn't hurt," Harry said.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Anything dealing with magic can potentially hurt."

"Shut up!" Harry exclaimed.

Snorting, Draco just went upstairs to the attic. Harry followed behind him carrying the spore. When they got upstairs, Harry extracted half the liquid from the spore and placed it in a vial. They began to gradually brew the potion. It was an extremely complicated potion with many layers to it. They could only do the first basic steps with very few ingredients to start.

"We have to let that sit for a few days then we can do the next part," Draco said.

Harry nodded, stretching his arms over his head. "I can't believe we're finally doing this."

Draco snorted. "Yeah. To be honest, I don't know what I was thinking trying to do this myself."

Harry smiled. "I guess we were destined to be partners."

Draco turned to him and Harry flushed when he realized how that sounded. He had meant it as work partners, but he wasn't sure how Draco took it.

"I've got to go get some supplies, since we're running low," Draco said. "You want anything?"

Harry shrugged. "Whatever you get is fine."

"Oh. And Harry?"

Harry turned to him.

"Don't think I didn't notice you using the moonstone again," Draco said coolly.

"I promise it wasn't much. I barely even felt it. And I don't feel tired or anything right now."

Draco's eyes narrowed. "Don't do it again."

"I promise. This time, I swear."

Draco just gave him a look and left. Harry went downstairs and lay down on the couch. He thought about everything they had been through together in the last few months. Their relationship had changed so drastically in such a short amount of time.

Later that night after Draco got back they made dinner and ate it silently in the living room with the fire place on. Draco got up to go take a shower. Harry stayed downstairs for a few minutes before he decided to go upstairs. He placed his hand on the door and slowly turned it. He walked inside and he could hear the shower running. He began pulling off his clothing and then he walked into the bathroom. Using his wand he turned the lights out and then summoned tiny balls of light that floated around in the air providing a dim light.

Harry then stepped into the shower. Draco turned to glance over his shoulder. He had a look of confusion on his face. He must have just noticed the lights dimming. A sultry smile appeared on Draco's face when he saw him. His eyes narrowed almost hungrily and he approached him, shoving Harry back against the shower wall as he pressed his lips against his. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck, pushing him closer. The blond groaned, moving his hands from around Harry's back to brushing across the inside of his leg. He began pushing Harry's legs apart as he settled between them. Harry wrapped one leg around Draco's waist as the blond moved his hand to Harry's rear and began to push inside. Harry's head tilted back against the wall as he groaned. Draco's lips trailed across his jaw and down his neck as he pushed in completely. Harry gasped and closed his eyes. He felt Draco's lips slide across his own. Harry parted his lips and Draco slid his tongue inside. Harry opened his mouth more pushing closer to him. Draco moved his lips passionately against his and thrust his hips forward. Harry groaned from the back of his throat, feeling his stomach squirm with pleasure.

Their lips broke apart temporarily and they both gasped for air before coming back together. Harry dragged his hands through Draco's hair as the blond continued to thrust forward in quick motions. They both groaned loudly. Harry's grip on Draco's back tightened as the blond hit a particularly sensitive spot. Harry moaned trailing his lips against Draco's cheek and jaw before finding his lips again. Draco's thrusting became more vigorous and they broke apart to groan breathlessly.

The warm water cascaded over them. Draco's lips were smooth to touch. Harry trailed his tongue across his bottom lip. Draco opened his mouth and grabbed Harry's head with his hands, thrusting his tongue inside. At the same time he moved his hips more forcefully, thrusting continuously. Harry's groans became louder. He broke away from Draco, parting his lips in pleasure. Draco's eyes locked into his and Harry could see them glimmering in the dim light as his climax approached. Harry shut his eyes as he felt his body reach climax. Draco moaned loudly by his ear and then sighed heavily. He felt Draco's body rest against his own and their heart beats intermingled. Harry opened his eyes, still having his arm around Draco's body as the blond continued to lean against him. In that moment it became very clear. He couldn't lose Draco. And he would do anything to make sure of that.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

TO REVIEWERS:

**AlliBaba13**: Thanks! I'm so glad you feel the relationship is realistic. Sorry for the delay! Been busy but I promise to keep it going until it's finished! Yeah, I agree that when people rush into the sex scenes it feels cheap, lol! Awww thank you! You're so sweet! I promise to update asap!

**xxxwallflowerxxx**: Thanks! =) I will update asap!

**Abby Nesoya****:** Awwww thanks! I'm so glad you liked the mountain scene. I'm so glad it's descriptive enough. Sometimes I feel like I'm too descriptive, lol! So I'm glad it's enough for you. I promise to update asap!

**ArQuella**: Awww thanks! =)

**mochiusagi**: Yep! Getting close! Lol! Oh wait, the showdown is here! Well at least with Voldemort. Yes, I agree. When the world ends and hell freezes over, Ron and Draco will get along. Sorry for the delay! I promise to update asap!

**bbbreeex**: I'm sooooooooo glad that you still like this story! Yeah, I took a hiatus from doing fanfiction too, but I just have to finish this, lol! I'm so glad to hear it's at a believable pace, because that's the most important thing to me. I hate rushing stories. I promise to update asap!

**Gryffindor Rat**: Awwww thanks! I'm so glad that you really like it! And I'm glad you like their jobs too. Yeah, Draco's parents are pretty terrible. That will soon come to its own climax, lol! I promise to update asap!

**Aysimi**: Awww thank you! I'm so glad you like this! I promise to finish it soon and update asap!


	32. The Unbinding Ritual

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note:** Again, sorry for the delay. My goal is still to get this done by New Year's. I think there's only a few chapters left. I'm estimating 3. I won't know for sure until I just write because sometimes the chapters are longer than expected. Anyway, I know it's been monthly updates right now, but at least it's slowly being updated and will be finished in the near future. I'm still doing two jobs, but by mid-January will be full time in my new career, but I won't lie, I've also been focusing on my own book series (working on Book 1) so that's why this has been going slower. Enjoy!

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**Chapter 31: The Unbinding Ritual **

A month passed since Voldemort's defeat. Kingsley had owled him to let him know that Voldemort's (or rather Slughorn's) body had rotted away. There was now only a pile of old bones, which the Ministry burned and destroyed to be safe. The only lingering question in Harry's mind was what had happened to Slughorn. He had been influenced by the Horcrux and had done some sort of dark ritual to allow Voldemort to take over his soul completely, that meant either eradicating his own soul from his body or probably worse merging it with the piece of Voldemort's soul to make them one. Once Voldemort's soul and the body he was using was destroyed, he wondered if Slughorn's soul was destroyed with it and if so, where would he end up? Unfortunately, nobody had any answers. Kingsley said he would look into it. Harry didn't want Slughorn to have to suffer or miss out on his afterlife because of Voldemort, but he knew there was nothing anyone could do at the moment. Voldemort was always one to try things that had never been done before, which meant there was no way to know what the end result was.

Cyprian's vitals had improved, but he was still unconscious and still sickly. His soul had suffered a great trauma from a piece being taken away. The doctors said Cyprian's soul was struggling to heal. Hermione was helping out a lot, trying to come up with new healing potions to try and help him heal. Unfortunately, the doctors were wary that Cyprian would come out of it all right, or even at all.

It had been a few days since he had heard any updates from Hermione. He and Draco had been focused on the potion. They had combined the first few ingredients, which was tedious. After almost every new ingredient added, the potion had to sit, or be stirred in a particular way, so they had to be very slow and cautious. After sitting for two weeks now since their last addition to it, they had to add one of the most dangerous ingredients: the dragon's flame. It was incredibly unstable and therefore if wasn't properly timed, could erupt outside of the potion and dissipate into the air, which meant they had one shot to do it right so it could be added to the potion. With that amount of stress, they both procrastinated on doing it.

Another few weeks passed as they did more assignments for Dimitri. No more progress had been made on the creature-plant hybrid. Dimitri hadn't even come up with a name for it yet. The door opened and they both stepped inside, exhausted and sweaty from yet another battle with a sneaky plant.

"I swear Dimitri sends us on the most ridiculous assignments sometimes," Draco complained. "That plant came out of nowhere! He didn't say it could camouflage itself!"

"I'm sure he doesn't do it on purpose," Harry said.

Draco gave him a look and threw his black, shiny winter robe on the floor. Then he lazily waved his wand and his robe hung itself up. Harry sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes.

"I'm tired. I didn't think we'd be running around so much."

"The damn thing wouldn't hold still," Draco said.

Harry smirked. "Yeah, because we were trying to capture it for some samples."

"Whatever," Draco said, rolling over onto the couch. "I'm not moving for the rest of the night."

Harry's smile faded and he cleared his throat. Draco lifted his head.

"What?"

"Er, it's just, we should probably do the next part of the potion," Harry said hesitantly.

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. To Harry's relief Draco sighed heavily and rolled off the couch.

"Fine. I guess we should get it over with."

Harry nodded. They both walked up to the attic where the cauldron was sitting. It had settled and they had placed a charm over it to keep it fresh. Draco walked over to the cabinet and carefully took out the quartz container they used to capture the flame. It was still slowly cracking. The break had become twice as large, now, almost touching the very top.

"Okay. We need a plan," Harry said.

"How about we put up a seal charm to seal in the area," Draco suggested.

"You mean, so that if it _does_ miss the cauldron we'll be trapped inside the sealed area and burn to death?"

"Shut up."

Harry snorted. "Well, how about you open it and I'll try to magically direct the flame."

"That won't work! The flame's too powerful. It's not easily manipulated by magic and we don't want to assume that it can be like regular dragon's flame. We only get one shot after all."

"Okay. You don't have to bite my head off."

Draco sighed irritably. The container made a sound as the crack grew some more.

"Damnit! We're running out of time. This container can't hold the flame much longer."

They both wracked their brains for something.

"Potter!"

"I'm thinking!" Harry exclaimed.

"I can feel this thing shaking!"

Harry shut his eyes trying to picture scenarios in his head. The crack in the container reached the top.

"Okay! I've got an idea!"

"It better be a damn good one, because right now it's all we got," Draco said.

Harry glared. He then summoned Draco's wand to him. "Hey," Draco protested.

"When I say go, point it down at the cauldron."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Down? What do you – bloody hell!" Draco exclaimed as Harry levitated his body in the air.

"A little warning would've been nice, Potter."

Harry smirked. "Quit your whining."

He carefully directed Draco's body hovering over the cauldron. Keeping him there with his wand, Harry then used Draco's wand with his other hand. The charm came out slowly in shiny blue waves. Harry rotated his wrist around and around causing the charm to become like a small, slow tornado and it swept around the cauldron gently and up around Draco. The container shook and made a loud crunching noise as it began to fall apart.

"Now!"

Draco pointed it downward and the white flame burst tearing at the blue tornado that Harry had created to keep the flames going in one direction. Harry's hand wobbled and Draco's body shook from the force of the flames bursting out. Although the blue tornado trembled and the waves expanded a bit, Harry kept it steady so it wouldn't break. The white flames had no choice but to go toward the cauldron. It entered the potion and turned it stark white for a minute before it settled into its natural color.

Harry lowered both wands, gently putting Draco back on the ground. The container finally shattered when Draco put it on the ground.

"Bloody hell. It actually worked!"

Harry exhaled loudly. "Yeah, just barely."

"After an hour we can add the pixie ash and then it will have to sit for another month," Draco said.

Harry nodded. "Well, I think the hardest part's over with."

"Sort of. Once it settles after a month, it won't look like this much," Draco said gesturing to the cauldron. "The pixie ash absorbs the ingredients while it mixes with it so it will be half as much. There will still be more than enough to fill one vial and one vial is all I need to take, but since we have so little of the plant-creature hybrid's essence, we should only use half of it. I'm just worried that if we use it all, it might be too potent and actually degrade some of the ingredients. And it needs to go in last otherwise it might interfere with the other ingredients that need to settle first, since we have no idea what the creature's spores will do."

"Okay. Well, you're the potion expert."

Draco snorted. They both then went back downstairs to eat dinner. After preparing it and grabbing drinks, they went to their respective couches in the living room and ate in a peaceful silence. After a little while, Harry turned toward Draco.

"I can't believe we only have four months left. Time passed by so fast."

Draco sighed. "Yeah."

"It's okay if, you know, you don't want to do any more assignments until after."

Draco shook his head. "It's fine. It's a good distraction anyway."

Harry nodded. "Are you looking forward to Dimitri's celebration?"

"The Anti-Dark Lord Bash?" Draco snorted. "Yeah, I guess. He has pretty good food."

"True, but more importantly it's official. I mean Voldemort is actually dead. His body, or the last piece of his soul that was clinging on, was destroyed when Slughorn's body turned to ash. I honestly am scared to hope that he's actually gone for good."

"It'd be extremely difficult for him to come back from being reduced to ash," Draco drawled sarcastically.

"Okay, yeah, I get it. It's pretty permanent," Harry said smiling. "You think Dimitri was suspicious when we asked him to post-pone it for a few months?"

"I'm sure he wondered about it, but he probably figures we just have a lot of plans going on. It's not like he's going to guess that my birthday of doom is coming up and we want to actually be able to enjoy the celebration."

Harry smiled. "If you think about it, it will be a double celebration. It will be for Voldemort's defeat and for you breaking the vow."

"_If_ it works."

Harry's smiled faded. "Yeah."

"I'm just glad Voldie's dead. Dealing with my parents would've been bad enough, but at least my father doesn't have the Dark Lord to run to anymore."

"Yeah. Not to mention the Ministry will always be keeping tabs on him, even when he earns his wand back, which isn't for another year at least."

"Knowing my father he'll fight the Ministry every day to have his sentence reduced," Draco said, sighing. "I just hope I never have to see him again."

"What about your mum? Were you close with her?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged. "Yeah, a bit. I mean, more than my father. She doted on me, and I actually felt bad for her because it seemed like my father controlled her too. I feel like she probably had to do a lot of things she didn't want just so she didn't have to go against him."

"You mean she was too complacent? I can't imagine her like that. She always seemed so…"

"Bold?" Draco said.

"Mm, I was going to say stubborn, but sure."

"Yeah, she is that too, but I don't know what it is, maybe love or something, but she just doesn't want to fight with him. I feel like if I just grew up with her she would've been more lenient with the things I was allowed to do and maybe…," Draco trailed off.

"Maybe what?"

Draco shook his head. "Nothing."

They both fell into a comfortable silence. Harry felt a knot in his stomach that didn't seem to go away. It only got worse when he thought about the potion settling up in the attic. An hour later Draco went upstairs to add the pixie ash. While he was gone a secure owl came in through the fireplace addressed to Harry. It was a letter from Hermione telling him that the new synthesis they had tried on Cyprian hadn't worked. He was still in a coma. While his vitals were stable and hadn't gotten worse, they also hadn't gotten better, which only meant eventually they would get worse.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_A couple weeks later…_

Harry pushed past the branches as he followed behind Draco. Glancing up at the night sky he saw the half moon shining down upon them.

"What kind of plant only likes to come out in the middle of the night?" Harry asked.

"Either the really playful kind or the carnivorous kind."

"I shouldn't have asked."

They walked deeper into the forest until they came to a pond. It was a very peaceful pond. It was a decent size and had trees and other plant life surrounding it.

"So what does it look like?" Harry asked.

"I'll know it when I see it," Draco said.

Harry glared. "Well that's very helpful."

Draco ignored him and moved found around the edge of the pond. Harry trailed behind him a short distance. He saw several trees around and a bunch of bushes but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Suddenly, Harry turned around and stopped. He stared at the tree behind them. He could've sworn that tree had been farther back. Harry turned back around and caught up to where Draco was.

"We should find a place where we can see better," Draco said.

Harry nodded. He turned to look behind them and he gasped. He barely had time to get out a word as the tree that he saw before towered over them. Draco wheeled around when he felt Harry's back up against his.

"Potter, what – shit! It's here!"

Draco shot a spell at it and the tree bounded away on its roots.

Harry's mouth opened. "A tree?! You couldn't have told me it was a tree?! That's a pretty specific type of plant!"

"I wasn't sure, okay!"

"Well it's definitely playful," Harry said. "I guess that's a good thing."

"Harry, look out!"

Harry gasped when he felt a branch wrap around his leg and yank him across the ground. The tree then jumped out from behind another bush, hovering over him. The bark in its center began to move and suddenly a mouth appeared with lots of tiny teeth.

"Wrong! Definitely wrong! It's carnivorous!" Harry exclaimed, trying to back away as it continued to drag him closer.

Draco shot another spell at it, surrounding it with fire. The tree squealed and shook its leaves. The leaves burst into green smoke, blinding them. When it finally cleared, the tree was gone. Draco ran over to him and helped him up.

"It had teeth!" Harry exclaimed.

"Oh. Well, I guess it's both playful and carnivorous."

Harry glared at him. "You could've mentioned that both were an option before it attacked me."

"It's coming at us!"

Harry jumped up quickly.

"I don't think it likes water," Draco said.

Harry smiled and glanced at him. "Well, there's an easy solution to that."

They both said similar spells at the same time. The tree was lifted off the ground and was flung into the pond. It began to thrash in the water, with its branches flailing. Draco summoned a robe and bound it together before lifting it out of the water. They both collected their samples. Harry took one of the bursting leaves and Draco took a piece of the bark. They let it go and it scampered off into the forest.

Harry sat down on the grass by the edge of the pond. "Hey look."

Draco turned and glanced upward. The sunrise was coming up from the horizon, turning the sky a bright orange. After a minute, Draco sat down next to him. Harry glanced over at him. Their shoulders were brushing together. Draco caught his eye. Harry stared into his silver-blue eyes for a second before leaning over to kiss him. Draco's warm, soft lips enveloped his own. Harry parted his lips through the kiss and Draco slipped his tongue inside. Their lips moved passionately together and Harry could feel his stomach flip in excitement. They broke apart slowly. Harry felt Draco's lips detach and then he moved forward to brush his lips just barely against Draco's. The blond smiled and leaned forward melding their lips together once more. After breaking apart, they both stood up and made their way back home. The whole time on the way back Harry kept thinking that his life was forever changed by having Draco in it. He couldn't even imagine Draco not being there anymore. He couldn't.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Three months later…_

Harry bit his lip hard as Draco slowly stirred the cauldron.

"Is it the right color?"

"Yeah, according to the book," Draco said, glancing at the Dark Arts book. "It seems to be almost ready."

The knot appeared again in Harry's stomach.

Harry swallowed passed the lump in his throat. "So when do you try it?"

"Just have to wait twenty minutes for it to cool then it will be ready."

Harry stared down at it. This potion was all that stood between a life with Draco and a life without Draco. It was too surreal. He had almost hoped the time would never come when they'd have to try it out. Even though they successfully retrieved impossible ingredients, there was no known successful story for completely breaking the vow. It was only a theory that stronger magic, such as the flame of an Onyx Dragon, and the liquid from an unknown creature, would have enough of a boost to break such a powerful binding curse.

Harry went downstairs and grabbed a butterbeer gulping it down. Draco came in a moment later and snorted.

"Thirsty?"

"Uh, yeah, you could say that," Harry said.

Draco too grabbed a butterbeer from the fridge. They both gazed at one another. Harry could feel the tension. Although Draco was playing it cool, Harry could sense he was trying to hide his anxiety. Harry waved his wand almost every minute to check the time. Although he didn't feel ready for it, he also wanted to get it over with.

"It's time."

Harry nearly spilled his second butterbeer on the floor. "Oh, er, right."

Draco walked up the stairs first and Harry followed behind him. Harry's throat constricted as they walked into the attic. The potion had cooled and was the same vibrant bronze color as when they had left it.

"Well, it hasn't changed color still, so that's a good sign," Draco said, looking up at him.

Harry smiled nervously. He didn't want to get his hopes up, but he already his expectations were set high. The potion had been extremely tricky and difficult, not to mention it was within a Dark Arts book passed down from Salazar Slytherin himself. It just had to work. Just as Draco had said, the pixie ash had absorbed a lot of it when it melded with the rest of the ingredients. The small cauldron was now half full.

"That means we can add the last ingredient," Draco said, glancing at him.

Harry nodded slowly. He went to the cabinet and retrieved the spore that he had taken from Dimitri's lab. He then took out a vial and poured the liquid from the center of the spore into the vial. It filled up a quarter of the way. Harry then walked over and stared at the cauldron. He gazed up at Draco who locked eyes with him. Draco then dipped the vial into the cauldron and filled it up to the top. He then summoned a cup and dumped it into the cup. Harry glanced into the cauldron. There was still enough potion left for one vial.

"According to Dimitri, this creature is pretty potent. They were only able to test a small amount but since only a drop of it affected the Sleeping Draught potion, we only need a few drops," Draco said.

Harry nodded and approached Draco until they were inches apart. Very slowly Harry dropped a few drops of the spore's liquid into the cup. The potion sizzled and then calmed down after a few seconds.

"Good. The color hasn't changed, but the sizzling means that it did have some effect," Draco said.

Harry clenched the vial in his hand tightly. Draco raised the cup to his lips and drank it all in one gulp. Harry wanted to shut his eyes, but he knew he couldn't. Draco stood there for a minute staring down at his hand and the vial. The silence was almost deafening and after a couple minutes Harry cleared his throat.

"So do we wait until the day of the vow or –"

"It didn't work."

Harry's heart suddenly stopped momentarily. "What?"

Draco threw the vial up against the wall and it shattered. Harry winced at the sound.

"But you don't know that."

"Yes, I do!" Draco bellowed. "You're supposed to glow! According to the book when the vow is broken you glow! That's how you know!"

Harry could feel the knot in his stomach churning painfully.

"There's still enough left for one more try. Maybe if we use the rest of the spore, it will be strong enough."

Draco's hands were clenched by his side and he shook his head.

"That's not it! It fizzled so it definitely was added properly and it didn't change the color! It's not that at all! I knew this was impossible!"

"Draco, we still have time don't –"

"No, we don't!" Draco yelled. "It's over! Don't you get that, Potter?"

Draco stormed past him and out the door. The door slammed behind him. Harry was so stunned he just stood there for a minute as his brain fought to accept what had just happened. His body felt stiff but he finally moved and rushed out the door. He walked to Draco's bedroom door and opened it. His eyes widened when he saw Draco flinging clothes and other things into his trunk. Draco's head whipped up and looked at him. He must have seen the look on Harry's face for he began to frantically throw more things in it.

"Draco, what are you doing?"

"What's it look like? I'm packing," he said bluntly.

"But why? We still have another month. We can figure this –"

"Stop saying that!" Draco bellowed, wheeling around to face him. "No, we can't! It doesn't matter that there's another month or not! There's nothing else we can try! This ritual was the only shot against breaking the vow and it didn't work!"

Harry bit his lip to keep from getting emotional. "But there has to be something."

"There's not!"

Draco slammed his trunk closed.

"Where are you going?"

"To an inn."

"You don't have to pay for an inn, Draco."

"Potter, just stop!" Draco exclaimed.

"That's a waste of money!" Harry raised his voice. "It doesn't make any sense."

Draco grabbed his trunk and levitated it. His head was facing away from Harry for a moment and then he began to move forward. His head rose slightly and his eyes caught Harry's. He could see that Draco's eyes, the rim of his eyelids were turning red. It looked as though he was going to cry.

"Draco," Harry said, reaching out toward him.

"Don't!" Draco exclaimed, slapping Harry's hand away. "Just don't!"

Draco rushed past him out the door. Harry followed behind him.

"Draco, wait, please!"

The blond suddenly whipped out his wand. Before Harry knew it he slammed into an invisible shield that was blocking his path down the rest of the stairs. Draco's back was facing him and he was standing motionless.

"I'm sorry," Draco whispered in a shaky voice.

He then walked down the rest of the stairs and disappeared from sight. Harry stood there watching him even after he was out of sight. It took him some time to realize a few minutes later that the invisible shield was gone. Harry walked down the rest of the stairs and stared at the front door. Grimmauld Place was silent, too silent. Even though he didn't want to believe it, even though a part of him was hoping Draco had just stormed into the kitchen to grab a butterbeer, he knew that Draco had walked out the entrance. And Harry was never going to see him again. Harry felt his nose sting. A couple tears made their way down his cheeks and he wiped them away.

Immediately he grabbed his robe and his broom and he rushed out the door. He flew as fast as he could, whipping across the sky, allowing the cold to penetrate him and numb his face so he wouldn't feel the need to cry. He finally came to his destination. Harry stared at the door for a minute, taking in a shaky deep breath, before he knocked.

The door opened minutes later.

"Harry?"

He had prepared what he was going to say, but unfortunately no words could come out. Instead, unexpectedly, Harry threw his arms out.

"What's going on?"

Ginny turned, clutching Harry against her chest. Harry knew that voice. It was Ron.

"Who is it?" Mrs. Weasley's voice came from nearby. "Oh, it's Harry. Harry! What's wrong, dear?"

He felt a hand on his head.

"Mum, could you make us some tea, please?" Ginny asked, closing the door while still keeping her arm wrapped around him.

"Of course! Right away," Mrs. Weasley said.

Ron stepped forward. "Er, Harry, you've been hugging my sister for a while. She does have a boyfriend."

"Ron! Shut up! Can't you see he's upset? It isn't like that!" Ginny exclaimed.

"What? Is it Malfoy? Did he hurt you?" Ron asked, raising his voice. "Because if he did, I will bloody pummel his ferret face into the ground so hard Salazar will feel it!"

"It's not that," Harry managed to get out. "It's not Draco's fault."

"Come on, Harry. Why don't we go into the living room and talk," Ginny suggested.

Harry nodded, wiping at his eyes and hoping that nobody noticed. Ron looked concerned and he followed behind them.

"Ron," Ginny said gently, "I think we might need Hermione, too."

Ron nodded. "I'll owl her."

Ron left the room and Mrs. Weasley came in a moment later with some tea.

"There you go, dear. Drink up."

She smiled warmly and Harry smiled back as best as he good. He took a sip of tea, allowing the warmth to comfort him somewhat. Mrs. Weasley then nodded to Ginny.

"I'll let the others know not to come in here right now. Give you a little privacy."

"Thanks, Mum," Ginny said.

Mrs. Weasley left the room. Harry felt Ginny's hand on his back.

"Just drink the tea and relax for a bit. Hopefully Hermione will be able to join us soon and then you can tell us what's wrong, okay?"

Harry nodded slowly. "Thanks, Gin."

She smiled. "Of course."

As Harry sipped his tea he tried not to think about Draco or how he might never see him again. He didn't want to break down in front of them. A little while later Hermione arrived. She and Ron walked into the living room. Harry was on his third cup of tea.

"Hey, Harry," Hermione said gently, sitting down on his other side. "How are you feeling?"

"Not good," Harry said. "Is Cyprian doing any better?"

She sighed. "Honestly, no. He's the same. We haven't found any other solutions yet, but we'll keep looking."

Ron closed the living room door and sat down across from Harry.

"Harry, can you tell us what happened?" Ginny asked.

Harry nodded and took in a deep breath.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

_**A special thanks to those who keep reviewing! You're the best! =) **_

TO REVIEWERS:

**mochiusagi**: Lol! Well it's been a rocky road with Voldie, but hopefully he's now defeated, hehe! It would be hard to come back from that. I will update asap!

**Padfootette**: Thanks! I hope you like the rest, especially the Epilogue once it comes! I will update asap!


	33. The Vow

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 32: The Vow**

Harry had to start from the beginning. He had to tell them his suspicions of Draco and the things he did to try and figure out what he was hiding. He told them about the potion and the side effects. Ron was nodding his head the entire time, agreeing with Harry about Draco being suspicious. Then he had to finally tell them about Draco's predicament, how his parents had forced him into an unbreakable vow, and how that was really everything behind Draco's strange behavior and sneaking around. Ron's expression morphed into one of disbelief, but thankfully he didn't say anything. Then he told them about the two rarest and most impossible ingredients to get for the potion. When he was finished they were all staring at him with wide eyes.

"Wow," Ginny said. "I mean, I didn't even think there was a way to break an unbreakable vow. It's why it's called an _un_breakable vow."

"I can't believe you did something so risky! A potion like that takes…well, it takes an expert! Someone like Snape would probably even have issues with it," Hermione said.

"Draco was Snape's protege in school so he knew what he was doing," Harry said.

"His parents _forced_ him? You sure?" Ron added.

"Yes, Ron," Harry said. "I'm sure. I was in his head, remember? I saw his memories."

"Poor Draco," Ginny said.

Ron gave her an incredulous look.

"So he just up and left?" Hermione said. "That seems a bit rude."

"He was probably upset," Ginny said. "His worst fear had come to pass. He probably didn't want to stay because it would make it even harder to leave, and if he didn't leave…"

"He'd die," Harry finished.

Ginny nodded.

"I just don't understand. It was supposed to work," Harry said, wringing his hands through his hair.

"It's a complicated potion and one that's never been successfully tested," Hermione said.

"But Draco said that the book said he was supposed to glow, so how else would the book know that unless there had been someone successful?" Harry argued.

"It hasn't been successful. It's been nearly successful," Hermione corrected. "That's why the book's theory was to incorporate more powerful ingredients, but because they were so impossible to come by, it obviously hadn't been tested before." 

"What do you mean it was _nearly_ successful?" Ron asked.

"Well, someone attempted to break it over fifty years ago. Apparently with this ritual potion she was able to break it, and she glowed, but unfortunately it wasn't powerful enough to permanently break it so she still ended up dying afterwards."

"Wow. She basically sacrificed herself in order to give someone a chance," Ginny said.

"A lot good that did," Harry muttered.

Ginny looked at him sadly. "You know, maybe it will still work. Maybe it only glows for certain people and on the day of the vow —"

"On the day of the vow Draco is going to be convinced that it didn't work, even if that was true, and he'll get married to Daphne," Harry said bitterly.

Ron opened his mouth but Hermione gave him a look and he shut it.

"So there's no hope?" Ginny asked.

They all sat there in silence for a minute until Hermione spoke up.

"Well, it is a very rare and complicated potion. It is very possible something was overlooked."

Harry gazed up at her. "Like what?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen the ritual myself, but it seems like something could get overlooked."

"Well, if we did the potion wrong then we're screwed because we don't have any of the rare ingredients left," Harry said angrily.

"It might not even be that. If the potion was the correct color, it may be something else, like the timing of taking the potion or something," Hermione suggested. "This is all just a theory, Harry. I don't want to get your hopes up."

"Believe me, they're not up," Harry retorted.

"I know Draco's forced to marry her and be a part of the family, but that doesn't mean you can't go and visit him," Ginny said. "If the vow does happen, then you should show up all the time and force yourself to be a part of his life, kind of like slapping his parents in the face."

"I don't think that would make either Harry or Draco happy," Hermione said. "Besides, I'm sure in that case, Lucius would make life very difficult for both of them."

"Well, if it doesn't work out, maybe it was meant to be," Ron said.

Harry gazed up at him with furrowed eyebrows.

"Ron! Shut it!" Ginny exclaimed.

"I'm just saying I'm sure there are other…great guys out there, better than Draco, that Harry could meet."

Harry noticed he hesitated before he said the word guys. Clearly he was still bothered by it.

"Ron, for the last time I'm not gay," Harry said tersely. "Draco was just a fluke or an exception, but I'm not attracted to other guys."

"You don't know that. You might meet someone else," Ron argued.

"Well, yeah, maybe, but it would be harder to meet a guy I like versus a girl."

"So go back to girls," Ron said.

"Ron, just stop talking," Ginny said in annoyance. "You clearly aren't empathizing with Harry right now. Or ever."

"Hey! I'm trying, okay?" Ron snapped. "It's hard to get over this whole Draco thing!"

"I know, Ron, and I appreciate you're trying," Harry said. "But right now I need cheering up."

Ron opened his mouth and then closed it and nodded.

"Harry, I can try to look into it," Hermione said.

Harry sat up straight. "You mean, like one of your synthesis potions?" 

"I'm not going to lie, I don't think there's anything I can do, but I can at least try to look for something."

Harry's shoulders slumped and he nodded. "Okay. Thanks."

Ginny rubbed his back. "It will be okay."

"You're just saying that. You don't really believe it," Harry muttered. "I think I'm going to go home."

Ginny exchanged a glance with Hermione.

"I'll be fine," Harry added. "I'm glad I can still talk to you guys."

"Of course, Harry," Hermione said.

He forced a smile and then stood up.

"Bye, Harry," Ginny said. "Owl if you need anything."

"I'll owl you in a couple days to let you know if I find anything," Hermione said.

Harry nodded to them. He glanced at Ron who gave him a small smile. He returned the smile weakly and then left. On his way home he tried hard not to let any tears fall. When he got home he immediately went to his room and took a hot shower. Several tears escaped and Harry banged his fist on the shower wall. He stood there for a minute with his eyes shut tight. He opened his eyes and shut off the water. He stepped out and waved his wand to dry off and get dressed.

He rushed up to the attic. He stared at the cauldron which still had the charm on it to keep the remaining amount of potion fresh. He slowly walked past it and was relieved when he saw the Dark Arts book still sitting where they had left it. In Draco's haste, he had forgotten to put it back in his trunk. Harry picked up the book and read the ritual:

_**The Unbinding Ritual **_

_Ingredients: _

_5 Phoenix feathers _

_Pixie ash (ground gently)_

_Dragon flame (the stronger the better)_

_1 Occamy egg (fresh)_

_Goblin juice (1 oz)_

_3 Thistles (not poisonous ones)_

_10 dragon scales (Hungarian Horntail or Opaleye are best)_

_1 drop of Basilisk Venom (the pure kind from a reputable store preferred)_

_2 Black Ashin plant thorns _

_Draught of Life Potion (5 oz)_

_4 Red-Tail Leaves _

_Purple larynxa blood (0.3 oz)_

_Flaming Pearlian Spores (make sure to put them in still fresh when the plant erupts its spores _

_into flames)_

_Tentacula venom (from serum of its spores - put in last) _

Harry skipped the brewing instructions, which were long and arduous, and went straight to the couple notes at the bottom.

_Tentacula venom regardless if fresh or not might not be potent enough. Replace with a serum that's more powerful, if possible something that isn't easy to take down. A plant or creature with this ability is more likely to have something powerful within which helps make it resistant to spells. That ability can most likely help to counteract the Vow, helping the person become resistant to the curse's side effect (namely death). _

Harry's eyes widened. So that's why Draco thought of the unknown plant-creature. It was definitely somewhat resistant to spells. It had been a challenge to take down, and the witch who had been killed by it had tried to defend herself with no luck. Dimitri had also said that the properties of the plant had the ability neutralize magic, which meant it had a good chance of being able to cancel out the effects of the Vow. So why didn't it work?

Harry flipped through the book to see if there was anything else that could help. There were some crazy potions in it. Harry stopped at a page with a potion labeled _Soul Release. _Reading through the ingredients and the notes at the bottom, he realized that it could be used for a couple things, one was astral projection, but the other was "soul healing," to help the person fight off certain agonizing curses that can damage the soul. It was possible this could help Cyprian heal. Looking at the ingredients Harry realized that most of them weren't too difficult to obtain and that it also stated for "severe soul curses" that the Ventacula Venom might not be strong enough. So instead, Harry figured the last amount of the plant-creature's spore serum would probably give it a strong enough boost to help Cyprian.

At least if he could help Cyprian, he would be doing something. He felt so helpless. Harry didn't find anything else that could help Draco. He went back to the Unbinding Ritual and read through it for the hundredth time. There wasn't much on it, not that many notes because not many people attempted or were successful to be able to update the book. Harry slammed the book shut and rubbed his face with his hands. He couldn't give up. He had some time. He had to find something.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Four weeks later…_

The next weeks that passed were agonizing. Hermione hadn't found anything to be able him. Harry had requested off work, claiming it was because of Cyprian. He had read through the Dark Arts book at least ten times. He searched the hidden library in the Grimmauld Place for anything useful. He came up empty handed. There was literally nothing on Unbreakable Vows, besides the obvious. He had become so consumed by it that he hadn't left Grimmauld Place much, except for food when he needed it. Ginny owled him to check on him.

Harry had gone out to get ingredients for the potion he was going to make for Cyprian. He didn't tell anyone his plans, for one, because it was out of a Dark Arts book, but also in case it didn't work he didn't want to get anyone's hopes up. He had started brewing the potion in a separate cauldron in the attic. He occasionally glanced at the cauldron that held the Unbinding Ritual ingredients. He wished there could be a second chance. That he could find one more ingredient to try that might work and give it to Draco.

He had to let the potion ingredients sit for a day. He had trouble sleeping that night, tossing and turning. Due to his lack of sleep, and feeling sluggish, he rested in bed for a good deal of the day. When he finally did get up later in the afternoon he finally realized why he had had trouble sleeping. It was Draco's birthday. The day of the Vow. His throat constricted. Draco was going to be married that day. The ceremony was at 11 at night, because apparently the ceremony included some pollen from flowers that bloomed at night. As long as they got married before midnight, Draco wouldn't die.

Harry tried to focus on Cyprian's potion, adding one of the last ingredients that needed time to settle. The only other ingredient left would be the last of the plant-creature's serum. Harry slowly walked over to the cabinet and took out the vial with only a few drops left. Dimitri hadn't been able to reawaken the plant-creature out of dormancy still. It was difficult to figure out how and to study what made it go dormant when they couldn't take any samples. All the other samples he had taken had already been used and tested in potions and other things. This was the last of serum and there was no telling when they might get another sample.

Harry stared at the vial. He walked over to Cyprian's potion. He took a deep breath. He glanced over at Draco's potion. He knew that the moment he used it for Cyprian's potion, there would be no trying Draco's potion one more time with the remaining amount, but he couldn't find anything wrong with the potion they made. And he wasn't sure what else could be added to possibly make it work. Harry cursed loudly and walked back to the cabinet putting the vial back. He couldn't do anything rash. He had to keep trying. Once the day was over, then it was all over and there was nothing he could do for Draco. Until the very last second of time was gone, he had to keep trying to find a way to break the Vow.

He exhausted his efforts the rest of the day trying to find something. He even went to the Ministry library and was there for several hours just trying to find a hint or clue as to what they might have done wrong. Kingsley wasn't there at the time since he was having a meeting with Sirennia and the other centaurs along with Minister Skyla to try and make a peace treaty in case of another war.

Harry came back home around 8 slamming the door in frustration. He only had a couple of hours until the ceremony started and Draco would be gone forever. He raced back up to the Dark Arts book that he had looked through countless times. He then summoned a piece of parchment and wrote out everything they did. He stared at it for several minutes. Inhaling deeply, Harry went to the hidden library and pulled the book about Unbreakable Vows that had an explanation of how they were created and how they were binding. Harry brought it up to the attic and put it on the floor next to the Unbinding Ritual.

"Please. There has to be something we missed," Harry whispered aloud.

He spent over an hour looking back through the pages of the other book that had the history of the Vow. He read through the section that explained the Vow:

_An Unbreakable Vow is a blood-binding vow. When performed a golden rope appears that binds the hands and arms of the two people shaking in agreement to the vow. The rope may seem harmless, but it wraps around the wrist area where there's an easily accessible vein. Even with a long-sleeved shirt the rope seeps through clothing material onto the skin, through the pores and into the blood stream of both individuals. _

Harry skimmed through the next part. He still couldn't believe Draco and Daphne's parents forced Draco and Daphne through this ritual when they were just kids. It was disturbing. He read the last part.

_An Unbreakable Vow is one of the most powerful curses. Even when done to save a life or for good intentions, it leaves its mark on the individuals involved. The two individuals making the vow are blood-bound and marked by this curse. There is no known cure or way to break an Unbreakable Vow. _

Harry sighed irritably. Obviously whoever wrote the information on the Vow didn't know about dark rituals that were aimed at trying to break it.

Harry took in several deep breaths. There had to be something he was overlooking, he just had to step back. He closed his eyes and thought not just about the potion but how the Vow worked. It was a blood-binding curse, which meant if he could find something to break that kind of blood-bond. The moonstone was a blood bond too, but it was different because Harry bound himself to the moonstone whereas Daphne and Draco were bound together.

Suddenly, Harry's eyes snapped open. He sat up quickly as his heart began to race.

"That's it! It has to be it!" Harry yelled aloud. "There's still a chance!"

He waved his wand and saw that he had about an hour before the ritual. Harry jumped up and waved his wand over Draco's cauldron. The ingredients were still fresh but he just had to simmer them a little so they'd be fresh when adding the last ingredient. Harry ran to the cabinet and pulled out the vial with the last of the plant-creature's serum. The answer had been in plain sight. He and Draco had been trying to complicate it. It wasn't going to be easy, but at least there was a chance.

Harry stared at Cyprian's potion, which only need that last ingredient as well. He had to make a choice.

"I'm sorry, Cyprian," he whispered, shutting his eyes.

Harry poured the remaining potion into the vial with the last of the plant-creature's serum and corked it. He watched it mix together. Draco had said to wait twenty minutes to settle before it was ready to take. It would take him about that time to get to Malfoy Manor. Harry put the vial safely in his pocket and then rushed out the door with his broom.

His heart was pounding so hard that he barely felt the cold air numbing his face. It was drizzling a little so his hair and face got wet. He was grateful for no longer needing glasses. Harry made it to the Malfoy Manor within twenty minutes. He knew they would never let him in the front door, but he remembered the memory he saw of Draco's, when he drank the Astrindgo Potion, of the secret entrance. He went to the same side of the mansion that he saw from Draco's memory. He found the same trigger and was relieved when the wall opened. He shrank his broom and slipped inside.

He went down the narrow passage way until he got to the end. The wall opened up into one of the upstairs hallways. Harry crept out listening for any sounds. It was silent. He clutched his wand tightly in his hand. He walked down the hallway toward the stairs that led to the bottom floor. He slowly went down into the front entrance lobby area. Nobody was there. He couldn't even hear voices. He couldn't have been too early.

Harry walked through the large living room complete with a large white couch made from what looked like hair from a unicorn, which was one of the softest materials, besides Demiguise hair, but it was material that was sold in black magic stores because unicorns were an endangered species. There was a fireplace charmed into the wall across from the couch, but it was up higher and literally a part of the wall. There was a clear casing on the front in which you could see the flames flickering from within. There was a large portrait of Salazar Slytherin staring at him as he walked through the living room to a door that opened automatically.

He came into a kitchen and there inside were several red gremlins at work. They all turned at once. Ever since House Elves had been freed the Malfoys couldn't get a hold of them as their slaves, but red gremlins were the unintelligent, small fat and easily bribable creatures. The only problem with gremlins is they didn't speak a language you could understand, but they supposedly could understand when being told to do something.

"Er, can anyone show me where the ceremony is taking place?" Harry asked awkwardly.

The gremlins all grumbled to one another and stared back at him.

"Where is everyone?" He asked again.

One of the gremlins went back to cooking something. One of the other gremlins came toward him but walked right past him. Harry sighed heavily. He didn't want to waste time checking every door and floor, especially if it was a hidden entrance. He heard their gibberish talk and he turned to see that the gremlin was standing by the door staring at him. Harry hesitated and then walked toward the gremlin. It turned back around and began walking out and Harry followed it hoping it knew what he was asking. He followed it down a hallway that led behind the stairs going up. They turned down yet another hallway and came to a small room. It was just a simple, small sitting room with a marble table with plush chairs by the window, a large painting of some sort of battle, and the Malfoy crest hanging on the wall with a serpent-shaped carpet on the floor.

The gremlin walked up to the blank wall in the back. It pushed on specific parts of the wall that sank in. Instantly the wall pulled apart to reveal a dimly lit passage with stairs that winded downward.

"Thanks," Harry said.

The gremlin mumbled in its gibberish and stood there, as if waiting for something. Harry new little about gremlins but he did know that they were attracted to shiny objects and loved certain foods. Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out some gold coins that he offered it. The gremlin snatched them up and waddled out of the room.

Harry stared down at the winding staircase. This was it. He tried to wave his wand to see what time it was and realized that nothing was happening.

"Damn," he whispered aloud. "Magic must be sealed off from the whole manor, courtesy of the Ministry no doubt."

He put his wand away and began to descend the winding staircase. There had to be at least 30 steps. He lost count after 20. He finally reached the bottom where there was a large underground hallway. There were floating torches on either side giving it an eerie glow. He saw an archway ahead and his heart skipped a beat. He thought he could hear voices.

Swallowing, he approached the archway and walked through coming into a large chamber with a tall ceiling. It was all made of black stone and there was definitely some sort of charm on it from the way the stones seemed painted with a shiny substance, which was no doubt an anti-noise charm so that people couldn't hear what was going on from above. There was a silver and emerald green velvet carpet rolled out from the archway all the way down the marble bridge. There was a strange pool of water around the marble bridge that was a dark purple color.

Two large basilisk statues stood on either side of a platform just beyond the marble bridge. The two serpents' heads at the top faced one another. On the back of the statues were some stairs leading up to the silver platform. Behind the platform was a statue of Salazar Slytherin holding out a large bowl. Five figures were standing in black robes facing away from where Harry was coming from. He slowly approached, not sure where Draco was and if he was one of the robed figures. Nobody was saying anything, which made it more eerie. It was almost like they were waiting for something. Two figures emerged from the back of the chamber, one dressed in a velvet emerald green, hooded robe, and the other in silver. As they approached the six robed figures standing there, the two recent figures dropped their hoods and Harry gasped when he saw Draco as the one dressed in silver.

"Draco!" Harry exclaimed.

All the robed figures turned suddenly. Draco's eyes widened when he caught sight of him.

"POTTER!" Lucius snarled, whipping his hood down.

Narcissa pulled her hood down next. "Potter, what are you doing here? How the hell did you get in?"

Harry began to approach quickly but Lucius stepped out at the entrance of the bridge, blocking his way.

"How did you get wind of this, Potter?"

Lucius' head whipped back to Draco. "Did you tell Potter about this?"

"I…," Draco started.

"You imbecile!" Lucius exclaimed. He then turned back to Harry. "You still haven't learned to keep your nose out of other peoples' business!"

"Save me your whining," Harry snapped. "I'm not in the mood! Draco, I –"

"Don't address my son like he's your friend!" Lucius spat. He came closer and Harry's fist clenched.

"Get out before I make you!"

"No," Harry said firmly. "You're despicable for doing such a barbaric ritual."

"Save me your heroic speeches," Lucius quipped.

The others behind him pulled their hoods off. Harry saw another man and woman, probably Daphne's parents, and the other figure remained robed, but was smaller.

"What is Harry Potter doing here?" The mother asked. She was stoic and didn't seem angry or surprised. Her blue eyes were piercing, just like Daphne's only she had dark blonde hair and the husband had black hair.

"I'm here to stop this," Harry said to her.

"The hell you are!" Lucius snapped, smacking Harry across the face.

Harry was startled and stumbled backward. When he slowly turned around to face him he glared at Lucius.

"Wow. Must be a change for you having to live like a muggle."

Lucius' expression turned to one of fury and he lunged toward him, wrapping his hands around his throat. Harry gagged momentarily but suddenly the bands around Lucius' wrists glowed, sending a painful shock up both his arms. Lucius snarled in pain and took his hands off him. Harry clutched at his throat.

"You can't hurt me," Harry said. "And you can't use magic."

"Neither can you," Lucius sneered. "Fine, Potter, you want to be here. You can stay and watch."

Harry angrily opened his mouth to retort but Lucius grabbed his arm, twisting it around his back and then turned Harry around so he was facing the bridge. Lucius kept his grasp on Harry's arm very tightly.

"You're not going to ruin anything else," Lucius hissed in his ear.

Harry struggled. "Let go!"

He gazed up at Draco who was looking back and forth, torn between what he should do. He made a move forward but Narcissa shot him a look and he stopped.

"Draco, I –"

Lucius covered Harry's mouth with his free hand.

"Continue with the ceremony!" Lucius barked.

Narcissa nodded. "Right. Draco, Daphne, it's time to submerge."

Harry struggled in Lucius' grip and winced when his arm was twisted painfully.

"I don't know why you bothered wasting your time, Potter," Lucius hissed in his ear again. "There is nothing you can do. An Unbreakable Vow has already sealed this ceremony."

Draco glanced over at Harry, looking defeated. He slowly began to take off his robe, as did Daphne. To Harry's horror they also took off their clothes until they were clad in their undergarments. Then they both lowered themselves into the gooey purple water. Harry made a sound in the back of his throat.

"Once it's over, I never want you to come anywhere near my family again or I will make your life a living hell," Lucius hissed.

Harry's eyes narrowed. He bit down hard on Lucius' hand, causing him to cry out in pain and release his mouth.

"I've already been to hell with Voldemort! And I just killed him permanently recently so don't talk to me about hell until you've been there!" Harry yelled.

Lucius twisted his arm and suddenly Harry felt his arm break, causing shooting pain up his arm. He cried out, wincing from the pain.

"What do you mean you killed the dark lord permanently?" Daphne's father asked.

Harry raised his head, breathing heavily. "I mean that Voldemort was clinging on for dear life with one part of his soul remaining. He tried to take over Slughorn's body and then mine so he could have a permanent place for his piece of soul so as not to be forced to move onto the hell that awaits him, but I stopped him yet again."

At that moment Draco and Daphne emerged from the water.

"And Draco helped me do it," Harry finished.

Draco turned when he heard his name.

"Lies!" Lucius bellowed.

Harry cried out when Lucius tightened his grip on his broken arm. It was in that moment when Harry's eyes locked onto Draco that he blurted out:

"I have the solution!"

Draco's eyes widened even as all the others stared at him with questioning looks. He moved forward toward Lucius.

"Father, let him go!"

"You dare speak to me that way! You dare order me around!" Lucius snapped.

Harry felt a flare of anger. "Let. Me. Go!"

The second Harry said the last word he felt his body tingle. Suddenly his body glowed slightly and power emanated from his body, throwing Lucius backward and away from him. Harry then clutched his broken arm.

"Wandless magic?" Daphne's mother asked curiously. "Interesting."

Draco ran up to Harry. "Are you okay?"

Harry winced. "I'm fine. Are you?"

Before Draco could answer Lucius pushed Harry out of the way. Thankfully Harry managed to fall on his back and not his broken arm. Lucius then grabbed Draco, who was sopping wet with the purple water, clad only in his boxers, and began dragging him across the bridge.

"You will do as you are told or suffer the consequences! Unless you want to end up dead you march up those stairs and finish the ceremony!"

Harry quickly got to his feet. Narcissa blocked his path with her arms spread out.

"Stop, Potter," she said.

Harry did, watching as Lucius was dragging Draco toward the serpent stairs. Daphne calmly walked to her side of the stairs, still not saying a word. Harry knew there was only one thing he could do.

"The vow has already been violated!" Harry shouted.

Both Daphne's parents turned, as well as Daphne and the other hooded figure.

"Shut up, Potter!" Lucius snarled, pushing Draco toward the stairs.

"How?" Daphne's mother asked.

"Draco and I have slept together," Harry said.

Draco's eyes widened at the enraged look on Lucius' face just as Narcissa's face paled. Daphne's parents just stared at him, glanced at one another and then turned toward Daphne who was just staring blankly. The other robed figure finally lowered her hood. It was a small blonde girl, probably Daphne's sister Astoria.

"You're a liar, Potter! He's just trying to stop the ceremony!" Lucius barked.

"No, he's not! It's true!" Draco exclaimed.

Narcissa's mouth opened and closed, but she seemed unable to find words.

"Shut up!" Lucius snapped, smacking Draco across the face.

Draco was taken aback and lost his footing, falling down. As he tried to pick himself back up, Lucius grabbed him by the hair. Draco cried out.

"Let him go!" Harry exclaimed.

He took advantage of Narcissa's dear-in-headlight look and ducked past her.

"Stop him!" Lucius ordered, pointing at them.

Both Daphne's parents surprisingly just stood there, but Astoria stepped out and blocked Harry's path.

"Daphne, you don't have to do this!" Harry exclaimed to her. "The vow has been violated, and I don't know if you were forced to do this, too, or if you wanted it, but you know now that Draco doesn't want to do it. It's not fair to you."

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH, POTTER!" Lucius snarled.

Draco tried to pull out of his grasp. He managed to kick Lucius in the shin, which made him let go of his hair. Draco tried to get away from him, but Lucius grabbed his arm roughly.

"Is this all true, Lucius?" Daphne's mother asked.

"Draco only did it to rebel against me, because of our disagreements!" Lucius snapped. "He would never do it otherwise!"

"Ow! Let go!"

"Lucius, is that really necessary?" Narcissa said finally.

"Narcissa! Not now!" Lucius snapped.

Narcissa pursed her lips.

"Daphne, I have a solution for this. You don't have to go through with it! Please, just hear me out," Harry pleaded.

"Don't list to him, Daphne," Lucius said. "Regardless of what Draco has done in his rebellions and going off to find himself at that ridiculous job and whatnot, he is still a pure-blood and our families can still be united."

"I don't want to!" Draco yelled.

"You belligerent little…" Lucius didn't even finish his sentence as he threw Draco toward the steps. "You walk up those steps and you say your vows! It is approaching midnight so if you don't climb these stairs in the next ten minutes, you'll be lying dead on the floor! Is that what you want?!"

Lucius pressed Draco roughly against the stairs and Draco cried out in pain.

"Lucius, that's enough!" Narcissa exclaimed. "This is going nowhere!"

"Shut up, Narcissa! This has been planned for years! We are not going to let them ruin it!"

Daphne's parents then turned toward her. Daphne gazed at them. Harry tried to move forward but Astoria was stronger than she looked and with his broken arm he couldn't do much to get by her.

"Astoria."

The younger one turned toward Daphne who had calmly called out to her. Astoria then stepped aside. Harry took his opportunity and made his way to Daphne. Lucius released Draco and rushed to stop Harry. Harry turned just as Lucius was upon him. Daphne held up a hand and Lucius stopped just before reaching out toward Harry, who was still clutching his broken arm.

"Daphne, please, don't do this," Harry said. "It's not fair for either you or Draco. You were both so young when you agreed to it. You deserve to make your own decisions and choose your own path in life."

Daphne stared at him with piercing eyes. Her long black wavy hair flowed out behind her. It was awkward since she was standing in front of him with her bra and underwear, but she didn't seem to care. Lucius was so enraged he was shaking. Harry knew it was only a matter of time before he did something reckless.

Harry then reached into his pocket and pulled out the vial. He held it out to her and she stared down at it. Harry remained as calm as he could, despite his erratic heart beat. Lucius was watching the exchange intently. Daphne glanced up at Harry with an unemotional expression. He could sense power from her. She had an almost eerie presence.

"She's not going to listen to you, Potter," Lucius sneered. "Your attempts are futile! You should learn to mind your –"

Before he finished his sentence, Daphne reached out and lifted the vial out of Harry's hand. She examined it, staring at the swirling liquid inside.

Lucius stopped cold, mid-sentence, unsure of what she was going to do. Harry was also unsure as to what she was going to do. Draco was also watching, holding his breath.

"Why do you want me to take it?" She asked softly.

Harry bit his lip. "Because I love him."

Daphne's eyes gazed into Harry's. Her hand clenched around the vial and Harry thought for sure she was going to toss it, but instead she uncorked it.

"NO!" Lucius snarled, lunging forward.

He aimed straight at the vial. Harry angrily jumped to the side, blocking Daphne and put up his good hand. He felt the power go through him and instantly Lucius was thrown back, sliding across the floor. Harry turned just as Daphne lifted the potion to her lips. Lucius pushed himself up.

"Don't!" He shouted.

Daphne downed the potion. The second the last drop was gone and she lowered the vial, her body suddenly glowed an immense luminescent light. Harry's eyes widened and he began to smile. Glancing over at Draco he saw the blond staring down at his own body, which was also glowing. It lasted for only a few seconds, tapering off until it finally disappeared.

"Did it work?" Draco asked quietly.

"We will know in five minutes," Daphne said calmly.

"POTTER!" Lucius bellowed. "I'm going to kill you!"

"You can't," Harry said angrily.

"Lucius," Narcissa began.

"This is absurd! Why is everyone standing around while Potter ruins everything, yet again?!" Lucius bellowed. "Don't you get it, Narcissa?! Potter doesn't _love_ him," Lucius drawled with disgust, "he just wanted to stop the ritual so that our son dies!"

"That's not true!" Harry exclaimed. "Why would I save his life several times during the Battle of Hogwarts if only to let him die?"

Lucius began to approach Harry and he braced himself.

"Lucius, it's over," Narcissa raised her voice. "There's nothing more we can do."

"I will not lie down and roll over!" Lucius barked, wheeling around to face her.

"Father, stop!" Draco exclaimed.

Lucius suddenly wheeled around and headed straight for Draco. "This is all your fault! You told Potter about the ritual! You betrayed your family you worthless –"

Lucius raised his hand up.

"LUCIUS!" Narcissa bellowed.

Lucius stopped cold. Narcissa had both hands clenched at her side, her expression was angry, unlike her usual stoic appearance, and her face had begun to turn red.

"You will not lay another hand on him! It's over! They have made their choice!"

"I am not going to surrender to Harry Potter of all people!" Lucius exclaimed, pointing an angry finger toward him.

"Then at least shut up!" Narcissa yelled back, startling them all. "The goals you have wanted for so long are no longer attainable! You need to stop chasing these unreachable dreams, Lucius! And stop being a child!"

Lucius opened his mouth but the look Narcissa gave him made him shut it firmly.

"Draco is still our son –"

"He's no son of mine!" Lucius exclaimed.

Narcissa's nostrils flared. "I have gone along with your ambitions for far too long. They have only led us into despair and more despair. Whether or not we like it, our world has changed! The Dark Lord is gone and we have to survive in this world! I, myself, am not going to be living on the streets like some pauper because you want to have a tantrum over things not going your way! Now I may not like how we have to adapt, and how our reputations are tarnished, and I may not like Potter," she said, gesturing to him, "but I have a duty to my family. And whether or not either of us like it, Potter has saved our son during the war. That may not mean anything to you, but it does to me."

She finally took in a breath. Lucius was seething. His hands were trembling. Suddenly, a noise echoed from above them. It was a clock chiming.

"It's midnight," Astoria said quietly.

They all held their breath. Draco waited, unmoving. Nothing happened.

"It seems the potion worked," Daphne's father said. "I'm impressed that there is something powerful enough to break an Unbreakable Vow. How did you do it, Potter?"

"Draco and I did it together with some very powerful ingredients," Harry said, breathing out heavily.

His own body was trembling from the adrenaline. His arm was beginning to hurt even more.

"We can still do the ritual!" Lucius exclaimed.

"I think not," Daphne's mother said calmly. "You haven't held up your end of the bargain."

"That was Potter's fault! He seduced my son!"

"Lucius," Daphne's father said, "Daphne has made her choice. We will be heading back to Russia."

Daphne gazed at Harry momentarily. Her lips seemed to curl upward into a small knowing smile. She walked past him and then turned to look over her shoulder.

"It was nice to meet you in person, Harry."

Harry blinked. "Er, you too."

She calmly turned back around and followed her family toward the stairs to go back up. Draco nodded toward Harry, picked up his silver robe and wrapped it around himself as he walked toward Narcissa.

"Thank you for understanding, Mother," he said.

Narcissa took in a deep breath and nodded. "I don't particularly approve of your," she hesitated and glanced at Harry momentarily, "choice, but we need to move past this. Clearly you're not going to follow on the path set out for you no matter what. So do what you want."

Draco nodded and then glanced at Harry who followed him. He gazed at Narcissa as he passed her. She glanced at him, eyeing him wordlessly. Harry and Draco made it to the stairs and began to ascend them. Neither one of them breathed a sigh of relief until they were out of Malfoy Manor. Draco shivered in the cool air. He waved his wand over himself to clean up and then buttoned his robe again. Harry realized how perfect the robe was. It made his already silver-blue eyes appear more silver.

"We should probably get you to St. Mungo's," Draco said.

Harry nodded tiredly and Draco summoned his broom. Harry got on behind him, wrapping his good arm around Draco's waist. As they took off Harry tiredly leaned his head against the back of Draco's shoulder, and he smiled. Despite all the battles that he had faced, with Voldemort and Death Eaters, and all his training, this was the first time he really felt victorious.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note: **There's only a couple chapters left! OMG! Crazy! I hope you all enjoy it!

TO REVIEWERS:

**Guest**: Thank you! I'm glad I didn't have to leave you hanging for long! I had time this weekend so I could update. I hope you liked the little twist on how to make the potion work! Sorry that a hug and true love wasn't the answer. =) I'm glad you're still enjoying this! Yay! I will update asap, hopefully over x-mas time. Have a wonderful holiday!

**mochiusagi**: The potion DID work, lol! It's just a little twist that it needed in order to work properly, that's all. They both had to take it, lol! =) Yeah they both were dealing with it pretty hard, but now they can celebrate! Yay! There's still more to come though. And thanks! I hope to get my book one done by the end of winter. That's the goal anyway. Hope you enjoy the next chapters to come! I will hopefully update around x-mas time. Hope you have a great holiday!

**Panna**: Thanks! I'm glad that you managed to find this story again. I hate when that happens, lol! And I'm so glad that you're still enjoying it! There's still a couple more chapters to come. I will hopefully update around x-mas time! Have a great holiday!


	34. The Veluferia Potenium

_**Luminescence**_

**Author's Note: **Well, there weren't any reviewers for last chapter so no comments below. I've still also noticed a lot of people are following and/or reading/favoriting the story, but not really giving any feedback. For the most part the people that do review (usually the same lovely loyal people – thank you!) have said that they like it and think it's very believable.

_**QUESTION**_**: So for those of you who read my other HP/DM stories, namely Captivation and/or Pure Rhapsody, has this story reached that potential? **

My goal for this story was to make it the best out of all my HP/DM stories, including believability of their relationship (since the two characters didn't get along at all and so it's very hard to put them together), and also good plot that has good twists and turns, but isn't confusing and also no big plot gaps, as well as good romance and suspense. Going back through Captivation, I felt that it wasn't quite as believable as I wanted. I think I made Harry too docile or something, also sometimes too wordy, lol! It kind of seemed a bit OOC at times, from my picky perspective so hopefully I've improved.

**IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE:** And sadly this may be the last fanfiction story that I do, not just because of reviews so don't worry, it's just because of my time limitations. I'm going full time in my new career mid January and I'm already swamped. It's a great career opportunity, but any free time that I get is spent with friends, family and writing my own book series (I'm half way done with Book 1). So, those are my priorities now. I want to thank all my reviewers out there, I know lots of you have been with me since Captivation and even before that. Fanfiction has been great fun and great practice for writing and your reviews have helped me in my own original writing, in terms of how I structure things and whatnot.

So fanfiction has helped me become a better writer and I'm grateful for that, and **I'm grateful to all of you who have stuck with me, from Captivation before and onward, and I will list the ones that I remember at this time (please let me know if I have forgotten anyone!), SO A SPECIAL THANKS TO: **_**mochiusagi**__, __**Padfootette**__, __**bbbreeex**_, _**Magical Witch**_, _**Sparkly moonlight, **__**Carling**_, _**Starr Whompin**_, _**HPmeghan7474**_, _**BeLLe ELLe PoTTer**_, _**idreamofdrarry**_, _**kistenbabe, **__**Drarry4eva**_, ___**messyhxdlovers**_, _**StubbornBlonde**_, and _**Missy Padfoot**_. Thanks to everyone else, the new reviewers that have reviewed here and there (I've thanked you specially at the bottom of the chapters). **So thank you to everyone who took the time to review!**

I wanted to put this in before the last chapter so that anyone who has questions about this story or comments now that they would like me to respond to at the end of the next chapter or the last chapter (I believe there's only 1-2 chapters left, I estimate). ENJOY!

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**Chapter 33: The Veluferia Potenium**

Harry was only at St. Mungo's for twenty minutes. They healed his broken arm and sent him on his way. Harry was so exhausted he could barely speak. He just got on the broom behind Draco, nearly falling asleep on the way home. When they got to Grimmauld Place they both hesitated after stepping into the entrance. Harry turned to glance at Draco who was staring out ahead of him. He had a tired look on his face as well. Harry didn't realize how emotionally draining everything had been until that moment.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked.

Draco blinked out of his daze. "Oh. Yeah," he said, wringing his hand through his hair. "Just tired."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. It's been a long day. We should probably get some rest."

Draco nodded slowly. Harry stared at him for a second before turning toward the stairs.

"Harry?"

He turned around. Draco was still staring at the floor. The blond raised his head and cleared his throat.

"Did you – I mean, what you said tonight."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"What you said to Daphne."

"Oh. You mean about how it was her choice? Yeah, I just thought –"

"No. Not that," Draco said, shifting his weight. "What you told her about…," he trailed off, glancing up at him, "about how you felt about me."

Harry felt his face flush. "Oh. Yeah."

Draco seemed embarrassed as well. "It's that I don't, you know," he started, gesturing with his hand. "It's just that I've never…"

"I know. I haven't said it either," Harry said. "It's sort of just been implied to my friends, but I've never actually said it to anyone."

Draco gazed up at him. "Not even to Ginny?"

"Well, yeah, I did, but only after she said it to me. And it's not that I don't love her, or didn't love her at the time, but it just wasn't the same as how she felt when she said it to me."

Draco nodded. They both stood there awkwardly staring at the ground.

"I can't believe I didn't think of that," Draco said after a minute.

"What?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged. "You know, how Daphne had to take the potion too. It's so obvious now."

Harry smiled tiredly. "Yeah."

"I mean, if you hadn't figured it out…," Draco trailed off.

They both fell into silence for a minute.

"Well, it all worked out," Harry said finally.

"I don't know how to thank you."

"You really don't have to," Harry said.

"Harry, you saved my life, well, not just my life but my freedom, everything," Draco said. "I would've been miserable."

"I know," Harry said. "I'm glad we managed to do the impossible."

"Yeah and I couldn't have done it without you," Draco said. "There's no way I would've been able to collect the ingredients on my own, let alone figure out that last step."

Harry shrugged sheepishly. "I'm sure you would've."

Draco shook his head. "I honestly didn't think it would work, even back when I snuck in to grab the book. I just wanted to try it to feel like I had some sense of control over my life, but I don't think I actually believed it would work. And it's a good thing you took that spore from Dimitri's lab. We had just enough to break this stupid curse."

Harry's smiled faded.

"What?" Draco asked.

"It's nothing. I'm just tired," Harry said. "I think I'm going to go get some rest."

"Okay. Night," Draco said.

Harry turned and smiled. "Night."

He tiredly entered his room and shut the door. The emotions swirling inside of him made him collapse on the bed. He was happy, more than happy, to have Draco back. He was so tired, as if all the energy he had mustered trying to save Draco just flew out of him. At the same time, he also felt guilty. Guilty that Cyprian might now die because Harry chose to save Draco instead. Harry wanted to believe he did the right thing, convincing himself that he wasn't even sure the potion for Cyprian would've worked, but deep down inside he knew it had been a selfish decision. He loved Draco. That's why he chose him. Had he helped Cyprian, they both would've been alive, but Draco would've been taken from him in another way.

Harry didn't even have the energy to get dressed into his pajamas. His eyes closed and he fell asleep.

The next morning when he woke up, Harry realized he sensed something different. He turned to see Draco lying casually next to time on top of the covers with his hands folded behind his head. Draco turned and caught his eye. He smiled.

"Took you long enough."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "How long have you been there?"

"Like ten minutes."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Poor you." Harry reached over to get his wand. He tapped it on his mouth to freshen his breath and then waved it to see that the time was only 8. "What are you doing up this earl – oof!"

Harry was caught by surprise when Draco wrapped his arms around his torso and pulled him down onto the bed. Harry's head was toward the end of the bed and his feet facing the headboard. Draco smirked down at him and lowered his head to kiss him.

As Draco kissed him, he began lifting Harry's shirt up.

"You slept in your clothes?" He asked after he pulled away.

Harry shrugged. "I was tired."

Draco snorted. Lazily, Draco grabbed Harry's wand and waved it over them both to make their clothes come off. Draco then grabbed the back of Harry's knees pulling his body closer while spreading his legs apart. Harry's feet rested against the headboard as Draco leaned his body on top of Harry's, murmuring the lubrication spell. Harry gasped and arched his back as Draco pushed inside him. Draco grabbed Harry's hands roughly pinning them to the bed as he hovered above Harry's body slightly and began thrusting back and forth.

Harry groaned, closing his eyes briefly as Draco pushed in and out at a steady, but rapid pace. Draco moaned loudly, thrusting his hips over and over again. Draco bent down and captured his lips in a passionate kiss. He licked across Harry's lower lip before slipping his tongue inside. Their tongues sparred as their lips roved over one another's.

Draco angled his hips and thrust in deeper. Harry's mouth parted and he moaned with pleasure. His hands gripped Draco's as the blond continued to keep Harry's hands pinned to the bed. Draco began to pick up his pace, thrusting in quick deep thrusts. He grunted with every thrust, breathing heavily above him. Harry felt exposed having nothing covering them as they had sex atop the covers of the bed. The morning sun was already gleaming through the windows, showing the bed with warm rays.

Harry's body moved with each thrust as Draco kissed him, sparring with his tongue once more. He licked Harry's lips entirely, gently mouthing his lower lip, before thrusting his tongue inside again. Draco's moans became louder and Harry knew he was approaching climax. Harry willed his body to try and hang on longer. It was difficult to do when Draco's was thrusting fervently, tilting his head back with pleasure. Harry only managed to do it because Draco had already been hard before they even started and it took Harry's body a few minutes to get there. Draco broke their kiss and shut his eyes, groaning loudly. Harry watched as his lips parted and a look of ecstasy came upon him before he climaxed.

Draco gasped and emptied himself into Harry. He opened his eyes as he rocked his body back and forth. Harry groaned but thankfully didn't climax.

"Aren't you going to…," Draco breathed out heavily.

Harry smiled. "Oh, I will."

Draco gazed at him curiously. His grip on Harry's hands had loosened and Harry used that opportunity to push Draco backward. Harry rose atop him and kissed him roughly.

"Turn over," Harry whispered.

Draco gazed into his eyes and gave him a sultry smirk. He then rolled his body over. Draco was facing the headboard as Harry spread his legs apart with his knees and settled between Draco's legs. He grabbed his wand and whispered the lubrication spell as his fingers ghosted over Draco's rear. The blond moaned gently. Harry trailed his finger up the blond's smooth, ivory-white back before rubbing the crease where his rear began. Draco moaned again and Harry couldn't wait any longer.

He began to push inside, gasping at how good it felt. Draco grunted, clenching the sheets. Harry then leaned over and grabbed the headboard, balancing himself as he slowly began to thrust back and forth. Draco groaned loudly and Harry watched as his body rocked back and forth from the motion. Harry watched himself enter Draco, which only made it harder to make it last. He finally closed his eyes, groaning loudly, as he quickened his pace.

Harry exhaled rapidly as he thrust over and over. Draco moaned, turning his face to the side so he could rest his head on the pillow. Harry gripped the headboard harder and began thrusting in quicker. His lips parted as he felt his climax approaching. Draco gasped and moaned. Harry had already been so close before. He couldn't hold back any longer. He tilted his head back and moaned loudly, shutting his eyes briefly as his climax struck him. It was a powerful climax, one that took him several minutes to come down from. Harry was gasping by the time he finally opened his eyes.

He slid out of Draco and collapsed next to him. Draco turned his head to face him. Harry turned and locked gazes with him.

"You still owe me a favor," Draco drawled.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "This wasn't it?"

"No. This is an expected thing."

Harry smiled in response. "What's your favor?"

"I'll think about it."

Harry rolled his eyes. "You said that months ago."

"Yeah, well, I forgot about it, you know, with the whole vow of doom thing," Draco retorted.

Harry laughed and then he slowly sat up. "Draco, there's something I have to tell you."

The blond turned to gaze up at him from his lying position. "What?"

Harry bit his lip. "I sort of…I was looking through that Dark Arts book, you know, to try and figure out what we did wrong."

"Yeah," Draco said, sitting up.

"Well, I found this potion called Soul Release that I thought might help Cyprian, and it would've required the last bit of the plant-creature spore we had so…I started it, but instead used it for a second Unbinding Ritual potion. Even though I wasn't positive Daphne taking it would break the Vow, I had to try, even though Cyprian's life is hanging by a thread."

Draco scooted closer to him. "It's not your fault. You don't even know if that potion would've helped him."

"What if it can? What if he dies because I didn't at least try it?"

Draco gazed at him momentarily. "This may be coming from a selfish place, but it's not your fault if he dies. What if the potion didn't work and we couldn't break the vow either?"

"I know." Harry sighed. "I just feel so bad."

"Maybe Dimitri will be able to figure out more about that plant-creature."

"Maybe…," Harry trailed off.

"Look," Draco said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "if it makes you feel better we can both focus on that plant-creature and trying to save Cyprian. My problems are over, thankfully, and Voldemort is finally gone. We'll save him."

Harry smiled sadly. "Thanks."

Draco nodded. "So, are you ready for Dimitri's party this week?"

Harry smiled. "Yeah. Were you, um, going to come if we hadn't been able to…?"

Draco shrugged. "Probably not. I doubt my parents would've wanted me to go. And seeing you there would've been too difficult."

Harry nodded. "I understand."

"We can always ask Dimitri if he knows anything else about it from the tests he did."

"Maybe Hermione will have an idea," Harry said. "Hermione! Ginny! I totally forgot to respond to their owls. They're probably freaking out," he said, jumping up from the bed.

Draco raised his eyebrows as he watched him scramble to put on his underwear.

"Are you going to see them?"

"Er, I'm going to reply to their owls and also ask Hermione if she could get together some time to talk about this plant-creature. Maybe there's something in her studies or schooling that she learned that could help us figure it out."

Draco sighed. "It's a long shot, but I guess it can't hurt."

Harry immediately went to write owls to them to let them know everything worked out. Draco had gotten dressed and gone downstairs. He was lounging on the couch in the living room when Harry walked down. Harry smiled and walked over to him, squeezing in beside him. Draco snorted but draped an arm around Harry's back.

A few days later Harry and Draco showed up to Dimitri's Anti-Dark Lord Bash. Everyone they knew was there, except for Cyprian. Tess squealed as they walked in and crushed them with hugs. Everyone came over and congratulated them.

Jace grinned and walked over to them.

"Well, I see you two have been busy," Jace joked.

Draco smirked. "Jealous that you didn't defeat the Dark Lord?"

Jace raised an eyebrow at him and then glanced at Harry. "Not particularly, but I have this strange feeling Harry did all the work."

Harry grinned and Draco just glared at them both.

"So, did you guys ever decide on that 3-some?"

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What 3-some?"

"Er, nothing," Harry said, waving his hand.

Jace smirked. "Oh, you know, you, me, Harry, having our way with one another."

Draco's eyebrows slowly rose up.

Harry's face flushed. "Er, I'm gonna go, er, find Dimitri."

The entire building was decked out in decorations, namely words flashing across the air like _**Voldie is Moldie **_and _**The Dark Lord Will Not Rise – He's Dead! **_Harry laughed at Malik's decoration that he created – it was stick-figure art drawing of Voldemort crumbling to the ground, choking and spewing out blood with Harry and Draco standing above him (in stick figure poses) victorious. There was a ton of food around, some floating on trays across the room. There was music playing, courtesy of a spell. After eating and chatting with Tess and the others for a bit, Harry pulled Dimitri to the side.

"Harry! How are you liking the celebration?" He grinned.

"It's amazing, thank you. I actually wanted to ask you about the plant-creature."

"Oh! I've actually given it a name! I've named it _Veluferia Potenium, _which is a combination of Latin terms, some meaning powerful and neutralizing, oh, and of course with teeth."

"Wow. Congrats," Harry said, smiling. "So have you figured anything out?"

"Hmm, well not much else. Although, I will tell you that I think that with its ability to neutralize magic, that I've come to a rather odd, maybe absurd conclusion," Dimitri said.

Harry raised his eyebrows. "What?"

"The witch that encountered this creature may not have been killed by it."

"What do you mean?"

Dimitri set down his glass. "I mean, that the plant's spores don't contain any poison, and as far as my tests went of the tooth you and Draco found, as well as scanning the body, before it went dormant, I didn't see any evidence that it eats people. Even when it bit Tess it wasn't really a bite to kill, it was a bite to neutralize. So taking away her powers would take away the threat."

"So you think that witch who encountered it, that she's still alive and maybe it just…neutralized her?" Harry asked.

Dimitri nodded. "That's my theory. I can't be certain of it, but it is strange, I mean, if she did survive why she never came forward. She just left her wand there and everything. Although maybe in trying to neutralize her, the Veluferia Potenium may have bitten too hard. Maybe she bled out."

"But then there would've been a body, right?" Harry asked.

"I suppose so, yes," Dimitri said. "It's very strange, I'll admit. I'm not sure what to think at this point."

Harry bit his lip. "Do you think there's any way of waking it up again?"

"I'm not sure. I sure hope so, but for now I haven't found the trigger that awakens it. Is there a test you want done on it?"

"It's not for me. I was kind of hoping that it would help Cyprian," Harry said. "You know, after what Voldemort did to him, I was thinking it could neutralize the curse."

"Perhaps," Dimitri said, rubbing his chin. "Although, it may not be able to do it on its own. The Veluferia Potenium's serum is pretty potent, but it's a wild plant and its serum is not meant to focus on a specific problem or specific spell. I suppose it might neutralize everything in Cyprian's body, including his powers, and the worst case scenario is he'd become a squib, but the other problem is that it may also damage his already damaged soul. There's still so much we don't know about what this serum can do."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Yeah. I think I may have found a potion that can work with it."

"Really?" Dimitri's eyes widened. "What is it?"

Harry swallowed. "Er, it's called Soul Release."

"Hmm, I don't believe I've heard of that one."

"Well, I'm not surprised. It's a very powerful Dark Arts potion, and pretty much illegal," Harry said.

"Oh," Dimitri said. "Well, if it's to save a life maybe the Ministry can look the other way. I'd have to see the recipe to see if it would do any good."

Harry nodded. "I can owl it to you. I've already brewed all of it; I would just need the plant's spores as the last ingredient."

"I see. Well, I'll try my best," Dimitri said.

"Thanks. Er, if this witch really is alive, possibly, how would you go about finding her?"

"Hmm…well, if she is alive, clearly the Ministry doesn't know about it. That means that she's most likely not hiding in this world. She's probably in the muggle world. Normally, I would say hiding out in the wizard world would make it pretty impossible to find, especially when people don't want to be found. It's why the Ministry took so long to capture other rogue Death Eaters and Voldemort supporters, but if she's in the muggle world, that's a bit easier to deal with. There's a spell you can use that can basically pinpoint anything magical in the world. Now that still means the entire muggle world to search and there can be a lot of mystical things and even people there who have retired from the wizard world, or people will growing potentials or people who used to have magic, so it's like looking for a fairy in a pixie nest."

Harry smiled in amusement.

"What? Was it something I said?"

"Nothing. Go on," Harry said.

"Anyway, in order to narrow it down and find her specifically, you'd have to have something of hers to spell."

Harry's eyes widened. "You mean, like her wand?"

"Yes, precisely! Like that," Dimitri said.

"Oh. What's the spell?"

Dimitri leaned toward him. "_Revealis corpa magialium_."

"Great, thanks, Dimitri."

Dimitri patted his back. "Anything for you, Harry. I'll keep you updated on the Veluferia Potenium."

Harry smiled. "Thank you."

The rest of the party went smoothly. Draco got a little tipsy. Harry overstuffed himself with food. By the time they got home they were exhausted. Harry told him what Dimitri had said about the Veluferia Potenium and the witch that encountered it.

"So why does that matter?" Draco asked.

"Well she survived it, for one, maybe, and I don't know, maybe she knows how the plant can wake up. Maybe she saw it wake up out of being dormant."

"That's a long shot," Draco said.

Harry sighed. "I know, but she might be our only hope at saving Cyprian right now. I don't know what else to do. That potion probably won't work without that ingredient. I don't want to waste a powerful potion like that, or do something illegal like that without it being a good shot at helping him."

"Well, it's not like it's the first illegal potion you've made," Draco retorted, "or the first illegal thing you've done."

Harry glanced at him. "What's that mean?"

Draco smirked. "Well, besides the illegal vow-breaking potion we made, we also took flame from an endangered species, and you have an Animagus form not registered with the Ministry."

Harry opened his mouth. "Kingsley knows about it now. And I was going to go to him to register. Just with Voldemort and everything, it slipped my mind."

Draco snorted. "Sure."

"Anyway, I think we should try to find her and just talk to her. I mean, there's nothing to lose."

"Yeah, except that we don't have the Ministry's permission, either of the Ministries, to take the wand or do any spells with it. You remember how difficult it was to even _see_ the wand the first time, right?" Draco argued.

"Well, we promised Skyla that we would let her know if we ever found the creature anyway, so we might as well set up a meeting with her. I'm sure she'll see us," Harry said.

Draco sighed. "Fine. Can't hurt."

"And hopefully Hermione will owl me back soon and let me know if she can get together."

"What can she do?"

"Well, maybe there's a potion synthesis she might be able to work out. I'm going to send her and Dimtiri the Soul Releasing potion ingredients and ritual and see if there's anything we can do, especially if we don't ever get another spore sample from that plant," Harry said.

"Uh, you sure it's a good idea to send an illegal dark arts recipe to them?" Draco asked hesitantly.

"Cyprian's life is at stake, Draco. I'm not going to worry about the ramifications of that right now."

"You'd feel differently after being arrested I'm sure," Draco muttered.

Harry glared at him. "I'd hope after everything I've done for the Ministry, they could give me a little bit of a break."

Draco rolled his eyes. "You can't just get the royal treatment of being able to break whatever laws you want."

Harry glared at him. "You're not helping."

Draco sighed and rolled his eyes again. "Fine. But if you end up being arrested, I'll be there to gloat I told you so."

"If I'm arrested, you'll be arrested too for being my accomplice so have fun gloating from inside the cell with me," Harry retorted.

Draco gave him an annoyed look. Harry owled Skyla immediately about meeting with her and why he needed the wand. She responded by the next evening stating that she was very happy to hear they had found the creature, and said that she would talk to the other Minister to see if she had permission to meet with Harry about it alone. It took until the day after that for her to tell them that they could meet with her about it. She also told them that since she had a meeting with Kingsley coming up, she would come visit them.

The morning after, Harry and Draco went to the Ministry and were escorted up to Kingsley's office.

"Harry, Draco, come in," Kingsley said.

"Hey, Kingsley," Harry said.

Draco just nodded to him politely.

"Is Skyla here?" Harry asked.

"She's on her way."

Harry nodded. "You two seem to be quite a team."

Kingsley flushed. "Yes, I suppose we are. She's been very helpful. We have a treaty, thanks also to you, with Sirennia and the other centaurs. Their alliance will be very helpful to become aware of any dark forces brewing. Sirennia was very pleased at the news that Voldemort was indeed finally gone."

Harry smiled. "I'm glad."

"She did ask about Cyprian and I said he's stable, but he still hasn't woken up."

Harry nodded. "Draco and I are working on hopefully solving that."

"Yes, Sky told me about your request for the wand," Kingsley said. "I hope you don't mind my being here."

Harry smiled. "Not at all."

Draco cleared his throat. Harry gave him a look.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Now's the time to tell him."

Kingsley gave him a puzzled look. "Tell me what?"

Harry stared at Draco for a minute, and then his eyes widened a bit. "What? _Now_?"

"You said you keep forgetting so I'm reminding you."

Harry glared at Draco as he smirked back at him.

Kingsley raised an eyebrow. "Am I missing something?"

Harry sighed and then winced. "Er, there's a lot I need to tell you. I've kind of – _we've_ kind of done some…you know…"

"Some?" Kingsley asked.

"Illegal things," Draco finished.

Kingsley's eyebrows rose up higher. "Really?"

"My family kind of has this really powerful Dark Arts book in their possession," Draco started, "which I took. Or _borrowed_, really."

"Uh huh. And what have you done out of this book?" Kingsley asked, staring at them.

Harry couldn't read his expression. He couldn't tell if he was mad or not.

"My parents, or mainly my father anyway, forced me into an Unbreakable Vow when I was just a kid," Draco explained.

"What?" Kingsley asked. His eyebrows furrowed. "Why would they do such a thing?"

Draco explained the agreement his parents had and everything. Then he explained what he and Harry had done, and how ultimately Harry figured it out and came to rescue him.

"Wow. A potion that can break an Unbreakable Vow," Kingsley whispered. "Do you have any idea how important that could be in the future?"

Harry nodded. "I assume you'd like the book."

Kingsley nodded. "Please. Is there anything else I should know about?"

Harry made a pained expression. Kingsley just stared at them both with a slightly opened mouth.

"Okay…Go on."

"Well, one of the ingredients – actually two – were extremely impossible to come by," Harry said. "One of them was flame of a dragon."

Kingsley crossed his arms. "Well, that's got to be a challenge, especially containing it in an anti-flamable container."

"That's not really the worst part," Harry said as Kingsley's expression grew more curious. "It said that the stronger the flame the better so Draco and I took it upon ourselves to…catch an Onyx Dragon."

"Holy mother of Merlin!" Kingsley exclaimed, uncrossing his arms. "You found one?!"

Draco and Harry both nodded.

"It gets better," Draco said with a smirk.

Harry glared at him. "We found out that the male Onyx Dragon is the only one that produces the white flame."

"And it was exceptionally hard to contain," Draco added. "And here's the best part."

Draco then turned and smiled at Harry who gave a look of utter annoyance. Kingsley turned to Harry as well.

Harry took in a deep breath. "I found out that night in trying to escape from the dragons, which were not happy that we invaded their home, especially with their egg hatching and all, about my…Animagus form."

"So when you confronted Voldemort…?" Kingsley asked.

Harry winced. "That wasn't my first time transforming."

"So…how long ago did you find out?" Kingsley asked.

Draco just coughed to cover his snicker.

"Er, like, maybe, months ago."

Kingsley raised an eyebrow. "It slipped your mind, perhaps?"

"Something like that," Harry smiled guiltily.

Kingsley hesitated for a minute and Harry stared at him nervously.

"What was your reaction to him turning into a wolf?" Draco asked.

"Arctic Fox," Harry corrected.

"Same difference," Draco muttered.

"Well, I was a bit stunned, but it worked to our advantage. We didn't know about, which made it even less likely Voldemort would've suspected it. I think it caught him off guard, which was what you needed. Besides, an Arctic Fox is actually appropriate. They're very cunning. They can also change their fur color depending on the seasons. Their coat is pure white in winter, but changes to fall color, brownish-red, in the other months to blend in with the surroundings. They have amazing smell and senses and apparently can track prey even feet below ground or a pile of snow."

Harry smiled. "Cool."

Draco opened his mouth. "So, what, Harry's not going to get in trouble for not telling you about his illegal form that he changed into _multiple_ times?"

Harry sent him a glare.

Kingsley's lips curled upward slightly. "Well, I was considering giving you both a pass, but if you want punishment…"

"Wait. Both?" Draco asked.

"If I'm to punish Harry for illegal Animagus morphing, then I should punish you for having an illegal Dark Arts book in your family and also being a participant, even unwillingly so, in a forbidden Dark Arts ritual, as well as being an accomplice in knowing Harry's Animagus form and not telling me either."

Draco's mouth had dropped open and he quickly closed it. "You know, a pass sounds pretty reasonable now that I think about it."

Harry laughed. "I'm sure it does."

Draco glared. "Shut up."

"Well, glad to see you've got your own free will, Draco," Kingsley said, smiling. "Harry, this is for you."

Kingsley summoned a form. "This is what you have to fill out for your Animagus form. Every year you will be required to attend a Ministry test to show that your Animagus form hasn't changed. It's just a standard test given to all Animagi."

"Why?" Harry asked curiously.

"Because some people aren't satisfied with their Animagi form and try to alter it, illegally so, with potions and spells of all sorts."

"Yeah, Potter, and since you don't get special treatment, you have to go through the test like everybody else," Draco said, smirking.

Harry shot him a look. "It's fine. I don't mind."

Harry filled out the form and handed it to Kingsley. It vanished after he said a quick spell.

"And now you're registered," Kingsley said, smiling.

A knock came at the door and Kingsley opened it. Skyla stepped inside in a beautiful snow white robe. Her hair was down in wavy blonde pieces but was pulled slightly away from her face with a glimmering barrette on either side.

"Sky, wonderful to see you again," Kingsley said, taking her hand and leading her inside.

"You too, Kingsley," Sky said with a smile. "Harry, Draco, nice to see you both again. I have to say despite everything I heard, I really didn't think you two would have found that creature. When I told the other Minister, he was so stunned and happy that he went and blabbed it to pretty much everyone he knew. Everyone is very intrigued to learn about this creature."

"Well, Dimitri's studying it now. It will come out in our next volume," Harry said, smiling.

"I can imagine the sales on that one," Kingsley said.

"Yeah, it's got some pretty big finds in it," Harry said. "The creature we found, if it's carnivorous, will be in the normal volume, but I think Dimitri said he's planning on releasing a special volume in addition to the next volume that's scheduled to come out in the spring."

"I'm excited to read it," Sky said, folding her hands in front of her. "So, I read your letter and have spoken with the other Minister at length about this. Normally, we would not give out such things, which are supposed to be protected by the Ministry."

Harry's smile faded.

"Is there a but?" Draco said.

Sky smiled. "Yes. Considering that you have made more progress with this wand than anybody, we are giving you a chance to do even more," she said, pulling the wand out of her pocket. "The wand only stayed in our possession, mostly because the disappearance was still under investigation, despite the years that had passed. Now that there's a lead, we must continue to follow it. And if what you say is true, if the witch is still alive, she deserves to have her wand back. So by Order of the Ministry of Ireland, as well as the Ministry of Scotland, I hereby relinquish the wand into your custody."

Sky handed it to him and Harry smiled, nodding. "Thank you. I hope we find her."

"I hope so, too," Sky said, glancing at Kingsley who just smiled.

"Wow. That's it? No forms or anything?" Draco asked.

Sky laughed. "Well, I can always make up some, if you'd like."

Kingsley laughed. "Yes, apparently these two want us to make things more difficult for them. They were practically begging me to arrest them."

Sky's eyebrows rose. "For what?"

"Oh, well, once they're gone I'll tell you."

Kingsley winked at them and Harry just smiled and shook his head.

"All right. Well, thank you, Sky, Kingsley," Harry said, nodding to them. "We'll leave you two lovebirds alone."

Both Kingsley and Sky looked taken aback. He could see both of their cheeks turning red. With that, Harry smiled widely and walked out with Draco snickering behind him.

"Well that was a success," Harry said. "By the way, I'm going to have to pay you back for trying to get me arrested."

Draco rolled his eyes. "I didn't actually think you'd get arrested, but I was hoping Kingsley would at least lecture you."

Harry snorted. "Why's that?"

"So that it's proof that the famous Harry Potter isn't perfect."

"I never claimed to be perfect, and you know for a fact I'm not."

Draco shrugged. "Still, it would've been amusing."

Harry shoved him playfully.

Once they got back home, Harry murmured the spell on the witch's wand on top of a map. A place on the map then lit up. It was the city that lit up, which still meant finding the particular place where she was, but this was possible proof that she was still alive. Harry spent some time booking the train tickets for them to get to the muggle world. He knew that they would have to walk a little ways from where the train dropped them off to one of the many secret entrances into the muggle world so as not to be seen by a muggle.

Their train left the next evening. After being dropped off, they walked a little ways to a gift shop. They had to say a password to the cashier, who then took them to the back of the shop. At the very end of the back room was just a plain wall, but when the cashier pressed on a certain spot and whispered a spell, a secret passage was revealed. They ended up in a grocery store bathroom of all places. When they emerged there were some odd looks at the both of them coming out of the one-person bathroom, but they managed to hurry out before drawing too much attention.

Once outside they found a quiet, isolated place where Harry took out the witch's wand and murmured the spell using her wand. A light pink shimmer burst from the witch's wand and suddenly created a small ball of light that floated in front of him. The ball of light began to move and fly ahead of them. They both began to follow it. The sky was already darkening so it was easier to see the floating ball of light. Harry was a bit nervous that muggles would see it, but no one seemed to point at the strange floating anomaly.

They hurried down streets, following it, through a cemetery and beyond until they came to an area across a field and down a dirt road. When the ball of light finally stopped and hovered, they stared out at a small cottage in the near distance.

"Is this it?" Draco whispered.

Harry swallowed. "There's one way to find out."

They both gazed at one another and headed up the pathway, which led right past the pond that had a beautiful willow tree right beside it. It was a very tranquil place. The ball of light led them to the door and then suddenly dispersed without a sound. Harry and Draco stood together at the door. Harry then took in a deep breath and reached a hand up to knock.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

Author's Note: I know, horrible place to stop! There should be probably 2 chapters left, one chapter and then the epilogue. So it's almost over! I can't believe it! **I haven't gotten any reviews about the chapter on the Vow! I was really hoping for some feedback on how that went down. Please let me know!**

I've been on a roll with updating so hopefully my next update will be around Christmas. Happy Holidays! =)

_~Angelic Candy_


	35. The Missing Piece

_**Luminescence**_

**Chapter 34: The Missing Piece **

Harry's heart was pounding so hard he thought for sure she could probably hear it. Draco glanced at him once or twice and Harry thought maybe _he_ could hear it. They waited there for a couple minutes.

"Maybe she's not home," Draco whispered, shivering.

"We should just wait a little longer. She could just be preoccupied."

"It's bloody freezing out here," Draco said. He reached up and knocked loudly on the door.

Draco murmured a warming spell over his body. It was a temporary spell that only lasted up to twenty minutes but he finally stopped shivering.

"If I freeze to death, I'm going to be pissed," Draco said.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Drama queen."

"Excuse me," Draco drawled. He glared at him. "Did you just call me a girl?"

"It's a saying. It means you're being dramatic."

"You know how I feel about muggle sayings. And I think that's rather offensive for a guy."

"If the shoe fits…," Harry muttered.

Draco glanced at him. "What was that, Potter?"

"I said drama _king_. Happy?"

"You know what would make me happy?"

"Here we go," Harry muttered.

"Taking my wand and shoving it —"

The door suddenly opened. Draco stopped mid-sentence, looking like a deer in headlights. Harry, too, gazed up silently. A tall, long, red-haired woman came to the door. She had light hazel eyes and was wearing a shawl around her shoulders. She couldn't have been older than in her late twenties.

"May I help you?" She asked.

"Hi," Harry said. He glanced at Draco who was completely useless as he stared at her silently. "My name is Harry Potter."

He wasn't surprised when she didn't react to his name.

"This is Draco Malfoy."

Draco nodded to her.

"I'm sorry. Do I know you?" She asked quietly.

"Er, no, but we actually know of you," Harry said. He pulled out her wand.

Her eyes went wide as she stared down at it. "I'm sorry. I don't know what you're talking about."

"This is your wand, isn't it?" Harry asked. "It led us here."

"I really have no idea. I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help," she said quickly, preparing to shut the door.

Draco murmured a spell and the door froze so she couldn't shut it. She pushed on it a couple times before she finally realized what happened. She stared at them with wide, frightened eyes.

"We mean you no harm. We just want to talk to you," Harry said.

"Yeah. And it's bloody freezing out so if you don't mind," Draco said, walking right through the door.

She opened her mouth as Draco walked right past her.

"Sorry about him," Harry said. "Would you mind if we just come in for a minute to warm up?"

She closed her mouth and nodded slowly. As she backed away from the door, Harry waved his wand and the door shut. She gazed at him almost longingly before heading into the next room, which was the living room. Draco was already seated on a couch by the roaring fireplace. Harry just shook his head. He stood there waiting for her to welcome them in.

"I guess I could bring out some tea," she said softly.

"You don't have to," Harry said, before Draco could open his mouth. "We won't take up much of your time."

Draco gave him an annoyed look. She just nodded and went to sit down in one of the chairs. Harry sat down on the couch next to Draco. She glanced down at her hands.

"So…you know who I am?"

"Well, we think we do," Harry said. "This wand led us here."

She stared at the wand. "I haven't seen it for almost 23 years."

Harry's eyebrows rose. She had to have been older than he thought.

"What's your name?" Harry asked.

She gazed up slowly. "Maelyn."

"Maelyn, can you tell us what happened when you confronted that creature?" Harry asked.

Maelyn sighed. "It's been so long."

"You must remember something," Draco finally said.

"I remember it came out of nowhere. Its teeth were black. It had beady eyes." She hesitated. "I remember its bite. There wasn't a lot of blood. I thought I had completely survived and then…"

"You lost your powers?" Harry guessed.

She gazed up in surprise and nodded. "Yeah. It's why I came here to the muggle world. The doctors there couldn't figure out what was wrong. They gave me some anti-curse potions and a couple healing potions. Nothing worked. That's why I don't understand how you found me. How could my wand even sense me without…?"

"Your wand is a part of you," Harry said. "It's like DNA. The wand chooses the witch or wizard, right? There's always a part of you that's connected to it. Even though the creature may have neutralized your abilities, deep down inside they're there, just lying dormant."

"Dormant? Neutralized?" She asked curiously. "What do you mean?"

"We captured the thing," Draco said. "Harry and I work for Hellebore, the plant expert company."

"Hellebore?" She asked, surprised. "Wow. I never thought I'd hear that name again."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked curiously.

She sighed heavily. "I also used to work for them."

Draco's mouth dropped open. "What?! Dimitri never mentioned that."

Maelyn smiled sadly. "Dimitri…he's still there…He probably doesn't remember me."

"You worked with him?"

"We worked in separate departments. At that time, he was in the research department and I was in the field department. It was my job to go out and take samples. I wasn't prepared for that creature to come at me. I was just going to find samples of a Rose Lark."

"What's that?"

Draco shook his head. "Forgive, Harry, he grew up in the muggle world."

Harry shot him a glare.

"It's fine," she said, shrugging. "A Rose Lark is a tiny leaf-like creature that comes out in areas that have high density plants so it can camouflage. Its very shy and you have to be patient, but they're amazing plants. They usually live or hide in rose buds until the rose blooms. Then they come flying out. Muggles mistake them for leaves just blowing through the air, if they ever do see them, but a witch or wizard can see their tiny wings and eyes and feet. Rose Larks travel around to find mystical sap. Only certain trees have it and when combined with the oil they secrete from the tiny veins in their leaf-like bodies, it produces a very potent serum that's great in all kinds of products, like beauty products, but I wanted a sample to see if it would be able to cure physical ailments from nasty hexes that deform the body. Anyways, I never got a chance to find it."

"Do you remember why the creature came out? Or if it was dormant or sleeping before you came across it?"

Maelyn shook her head. "Sorry. All I remember is that I had spotted a Rose Lark and I was creeping over to a large area of bushes to hide in to wait for it to get close enough to stun with a harmless stunning spell, and next thing I know the plant I knelt down by suddenly grew taller, had teeth and latched onto me. I barely had enough time to use my wand to record my statement of it, hoping that Hellebore would get it, but the Ministry took my wand instead."

"I don't understand. If you survived, why did you leave your wand there?" Draco asked.

"I didn't," Maelyn said. "I got away from the creature and I was trying to use spells afterwards and I realized that I was having a lot of trouble with my wand. It was still coming after me so I used my wand and one last spell that just barely worked to make my wand the distraction and I escaped with my life. I went to St. Mungo's and they had me trying all sorts of other wands. I was too scared to try and go back to find my wand. When I realized there was nothing they could do and that I couldn't even do the simplest of spells anymore, I just…," she trailed off, glancing down. "I couldn't handle it. I felt like my whole life had been taken away from me. So I ran away. I couldn't go back to Hellebore. I had no samples and without my abilities I was afraid I'd no longer have a job there."

"You could've done research and helped them try to track down the creature," Draco suggested.

"I know, but…," she trailed off and sighed. "It wasn't just Hellebore. It was Dimitri."

"You love him," Harry said softly.

Maelyn glanced down. "Yeah. I had a huge crush on him and I just couldn't face him. I couldn't work there with him being like that, with no powers and being useless. Even if they let me stay there to work on research, I was afraid that Dimitri would think I was useless, now being a squib."

"That doesn't sound like Dimitri," Harry said. "I think that he would be happy to know that you're alive."

"Wait, does Dimitri even know it was you?" Draco asked.

"No. No one knows it was me. I remember when the Ministry came out with their initial investigation after finding my wand. They just thought that it was some random witch who encountered this thing. They had no way to know it was my wand. If I had stayed in the wizard world, my wand would've probably eventually found me and they'd figure it out. That's why I had to leave," Maelyn explained.

"So when you didn't show up for work, what did people think?" Harry asked.

Maelyn sighed. "I sent in an owl stating that I had found another job elsewhere so that they wouldn't worry or figure it out. I didn't want them to realize that I was no longer a witch."

"You're still a witch," Harry said. "And you're our only hope."

Maelyn glanced up. "With what?"

"With saving a friend of ours," Harry said.

"We think that the serum from the spore of that creature can save him from a very bad dark curse," Draco explained.

"And you need me to take a sample? Can't Dimitri do it?" She asked.

"Well, it's kind of gone dormant," Harry said. "It closed up and won't wake up so we can't get to the spores to take samples. What samples we did get proved effective in another potion, but we need it for the potion to save our friend's life."

"I'm sorry. I don't know anything about it," she said softly.

"But you're the only other person who has encountered it. You encountered it one-on-one," Draco said. "According to our research, your description of the creature was so detailed. You were up close and personal with it and you were describing how it came out at you. It must have been dormant before you came across it or stepped on it or did something. Something must've triggered it waking up."

"I don't know. It happened so fast and it's been so long," she said rubbing her forehead. "I really wish I could help."

Draco glanced at Harry who gazed back at him.

"I'm sorry," Maelyn said softly.

"Maybe coming back will help jog your memory," Harry said.

Maelyn's head snapped up. "No! I'm not going anywhere near that thing again!"

"Seeing it again might help you remember exactly what happened," Harry said.

She shook her head. "I can't. I'm sorry."

"You can get your powers back," Draco added.

Maelyn glanced up at him in surprise. "How?"

"The spore of the creature also acts as its antedate," Harry said. "Another girl from our office was also bit by it and she's fine. She was in St. Mungo's for a couple days, but her powers are still intact. We managed to prevent what happened to you."

"So you think…I could be a witch again?" She asked.

Harry and Draco both nodded.

"I know we can't guarantee it, but there's a chance," Harry said.

"What if I can't figure it out?" She asked. "What if your friend dies and I can't be a witch again either?"

"You know I used to think that way," Draco said, glancing at Harry. "I've learned it is possible to do the impossible."

Harry smiled at him. "And we'll help in any way that we can."

Maelyn bit her lip. "I guess I can try."

Harry and Draco both smiled.

"I don't know if I can, but I'd like to help," she said. "You two can stay here tonight since it's getting late. We can take the first train back tomorrow morning. I only have a pull-out couch bed, though."

"It's okay," Harry said.

"We're used to sharing," Draco said, smirking at Harry.

Maelyn blinked in surprise. "Oh. You two are…"

"Together, yes," Harry finished.

"Okay. Well I'll get some blankets then. Would you both like tea too?"

"Sure," Draco said, glancing at Harry as if to say 'finally'.

Harry was grateful Maelyn had walked out of the room at that moment. She came back with blankets and a tray with a teapot and three teacups. There was also a plate full of tea cookies in the center. Draco's eyes lit up. He took one of the cookies and dunked it in his tea. Harry just smiled as he stirred cream in his tea.

"So you don't know who Harry is, do you?" Draco asked.

Maelyn shook her head. "Should I?"

"Are you kidding? He's famous," Draco said.

"Really?" She asked, glancing at him.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, but not because of anything good."

"We have a lot to tell you about the wizard world since you've been gone. A couple of dark wars happened," Draco said.

"Oh, that sounds awful," she said.

Draco began explaining to her about Voldemort and his rise to power. Then when he explained to her that his family had been Death Eaters her eyes got really wide. She kept glancing back and forth between them, probably wondering how they ended up together. He finished with Voldemort's final defeat. He had shortened it up a lot but it still took a while to explain, especially when she asked questions.

"Wow. I'm kind of glad I was here for all that," she said, staring down at her teacup. It wasn't steaming anymore.

Harry glanced at it and waved his wand. It immediately heated back up. She glanced up in surprise.

"You didn't even say a spell."

"Harry can do magic in his head, and he can also do wandless magic, when he wants to be a show-off," Draco said.

"That must be nice."

Harry nodded.

"Well, I should probably let you both get some rest," she said, standing up. "Help yourselves to anything. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight," Harry said.

She smiled and nodded before disappearing down the hall. Harry pulled out the bed from the couch, amused by the curious look on Draco's face.

"I've never seen a bed within a couch before," he said.

"It's kinda like magic, huh?" Harry joked.

Draco snorted at him. "It's _nothing_ like magic."

They both settled into the bed. Draco fell asleep rather quickly. Harry stared at the ceiling reveling in the close proximity. Gazing over at Draco, Harry felt the stirrings of emotion. His mind flashed back to the vow and how close he had come to losing him. In just that moment it almost felt surreal. His life had been full of tragedies and hardships so much so that it was hard to imagine everything had turned out all right. Draco moved in his sleep, turning his head so he was facing Harry. Smiling, Harry moved in closer, resting his head right next to Draco's and closed his eyes.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The next morning, Harry, Draco and Maelyn headed back to Hellebore. When they got to the building Maelyn hesitated before stepping into the elevator. She wrung her hands nervously. They entered the room where the plant garden and sanctuary were. Dimitri was working alongside Tess, Malik, Ronan and Maisie. When Dimitri turned his eyes suddenly got big. Maelyn stopped and stared up at him. Dimitri immediately rushed down to the floor level.

"Maelyn, is that you?" Dimitri asked.

"Hi, Dimitri," she said nervously. "It's been a while."

"Where have you been? You just sort of up and left. I heard you owled and said you were leaving but you never came to say goodbye."

"It's a long story. I think you should sit down," Maelyn said.

Dimitri followed her and they walked a distance away. Harry could see Dimitri's expression grow from curious to concerned.

"What's going on?" Tess asked.

"It's complicated," Draco said.

Tess pursed her lips. "Uh huh."

"We really need to figure out how to wake that plant up. It might be able to help Cyprian," Harry said. "She encountered this thing in the wild so we're seeing if she can help."

"Oh," Tess said. "Well I hope she can, but seriously we've tried everything."

Harry glanced over to see Dimitri giving Maelyn a hug as she wiped her eyes. Moments later Dimitri and Maelyn walked over to them.

"It's in there," Dimitri said, pointing to the garden. "You sure you're up for this?"

Maelyn nodded. She took in a deep breath and stepped into the garden. She made her way past some other plants that didn't seem to really care she was there. One small plant did begin to follow her. It was no taller than her calf and stayed close to her feet. She gasped as she saw the Veluferia Potenium. Its tentacle-like arms had wrapped all around itself and its color had faded slightly. It looked like a very large cocoon.

Maelyn hesitantly reached out to touch it. It didn't move.

"I think I was just crouching when it came upon me, but before that I think I was using light spells to help me see," she said quietly.

Dimitri nodded and began releasing light charms and spells into the air directly around the Veluferia Potenium. Still nothing happened.

Maelyn bit her lip. "Maybe it was because I stepped on it by accident or something."

She reached out her foot and stepped on the bottom part of its trunk. It still didn't budge.

"I don't understand. I don't remember doing much else," she said.

"It's okay. Take your time, Maelyn," Dimitri said. "It's been a while."

She nodded and went back to examining the plant. For the next hour Harry and Draco and the others watched her try to replay the moment when she encountered it. She tried acting out exactly what she had done, but nothing seemed to work. Harry leaned over to Draco.

"Hey, I'm going to go visit Cyprian. I'll be back."

Draco nodded wordlessly. Harry quietly slipped out and made his way to St. Mungo's. When he walked in he was told that the doctors were performing more spells and administering potions so he couldn't go inside just yet. Harry sat out in the waiting room sipping on a fizzling pixie drink, which was offered to him by one of the nurses coming around to others who were in the waiting room. Several minutes later Harry saw Hermione emerge from down the hall.

"Hermione," Harry said, setting his drink down.

She smiled at him and ran over to hug him. "Harry! I'm so happy to see you."

She pulled away. "I got your owl. I'm so glad everything worked out."

"Me too," Harry said. "Are you here for Cyprian?"

She shook her head. "No, I've been working in the maternity ward."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "You're delivering babies."

Hermione smiled and sat down next to him. "Not quite. I have worked with pregnant women who are experiencing weird side effects."

"Like what?"

"Oh, you know, sometimes magical children play tricks from the womb. One baby decided to make his mom's hair turn various colors randomly. Another one makes her levitate, usually at the most inconvenient times. Those sorts of things."

Harry laughed. "Wow. It must be hard not to laugh."

"Sometimes," she said with a smile. "Although, I've also been working with couples who are having trouble getting pregnant. It's really tragic."

"Really? Is there anything you can do for them?"

Hermione sighed. "Well, there are some potions that can work if someone's been hexed. Nine times out of ten it works for that, because hexes are more mild than curses, but there are couples who have been cursed far beyond what we can do for them. One couple in particular, they were involved with the Order. They weren't members of the Order back when it first came to be, but they helped the Order out, sent them messages when they saw anything suspicious, helped create safe havens for those standing up against Voldemort and his Death Eaters.

"When Voldemort found out he paid a visit to them. Seeing that they were willing to die for their cause, he instead cursed them and told them that they'd never be able to carry on their line. Then he went and killed off both of their families so they'd be the only ones remaining to teach them a lesson. Ever since then they've been trying to get pregnant. Since witches age much slower than muggles and because of their inner magic, they can get pregnant much later in life, but they are running out of time."

"And there's nothing you can do?"

"Well, one suggestion the doctor mentioned was trying to find a loophole around the curse. The main person who was cursed was the husband, to make it so his sperm would die before being able to fertilize. So we've been trying to use other people's sperm and using a spell, of course outside of the body, similar to the muggle way of In Vetro fertilization, we charm the two sperms together then magically inseminate the mother with them in hopes that with help from the other sperm it can withstand the curse."

"So you use the other person's sperm as the bait for the curse?" Harry asked.

"Sadly, no. Unfortunately, there's no way that the husband's sperm can ever fertilize because that's what the curse was made to do. However, if the other person's sperm can survive, so in other words, _his_ sperm acts as the decoy and per usual it will self destruct when it gets close, but if the other person's can then withstand that 'explosion' of sorts it can carry on through. What we're also hoping is that not only will that person's sperm survive, but if it can take a couple of genes from the husband's sperm with it. So even though the baby won't be 100 percent the husband's, it will still carry on a few traits, and of course the mother will carry on her traits. So far no one's sperm has been able to survive the curse," Hermione said.

Harry nodded slowly. "I see."

"We keep telling them to not give up, but I feel like they're soon going to realize that probably nobody's sperm can withstand that curse," Hermione said, sighing. "I've tried everything. I tried to even create a counter potion. Hey, do you think that plant-creature you and Draco found could help?"

"Maybe," Harry said. "We're trying to wake it up now. If it can help heal Cyprian's damage from the curse he sustained, it might be able to help them."

"I hope so," Hermione said. "At least I can give them some good news; that we're working on extracting serum from a powerful new creature. That will at least give them some hope."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. And I hope it works for them."

"So you guys haven't had any luck waking it up yet?"

Harry shook his head. He then explained to her about Maelyn.

"I can't believe she's still alive!" Hermione exclaimed. "I do hope she can figure out how to wake it up."

"Yeah. Me too. I should probably get back. I just wanted to check on Cyprian."

"He's going through some more experimental procedures today so you probably can't, but I'll let you know if anything changes," Hermione said, hugging him.

"Thanks Mione."

She smiled. "Of course."

Harry left and headed back to Hellebore. He saw Draco sitting there looking glum. Maelyn was being comforted by Dimitri.

"What's going on?"

"She's just frustrated. Nothing's working," Draco said, yawning. "It's been pretty boring. How's Cyprian?"

"The same."

Harry glanced up when he saw Maelyn walking over to him.

"Harry, I'm sorry. Nothing I do is working."

"Don't give up yet," Harry said. "Please. Just think about everything you did that day."

"I've already played through it so many times," she said.

"But there has to be something we're missing. Sometimes the answer is right in front of you," Harry said, glancing at Draco who smiled and nodded. "Look. Think back. What else were you doing besides the light charms and walking around?"

"I don't know. I mean, nothing," she said, pacing back and forth. "I can't remember doing anything else."

"I crouched down –"

"Before that," Harry said.

"Before that I was using my light charm and trying to find my way through the woods," she said. "And I already tried that."

"What were you doing before you entered the woods?" Harry asked.

"Why would that matter?"

"Just think about it."

Maelyn sighed. "I was thinking about my assignment. I was looking at the information I had, which wasn't much. And then I started through the woods. It wasn't until I reached the back part of it that I needed my light charms."

"Were you doing anything while you were looking at the information, like talking aloud or –"

"By Merlin!" Maelyn exclaimed. "That's right! I was singing! I had this song stuck in my head!"

A determined look passed on her face. She took in a deep breath and approached the creature. Dimitri, Tess, Ronan, Malik and both Draco and Harry were watching. She began to sing the song softly. She stepped into the garden, singing the song. Dimitri said the light spells again. Suddenly, the tentacles began to shudder. Maelyn didn't miss a beat. She continued to sing as they all gathered around. The tentacles spun out from around it as its face rose up and its teeth emerged. Maelyn froze where she was but she kept singing. It shot its tentacles toward her.

"No you don't," Draco drawled. He shouted his freezing charm and the plant began to freeze. It was fighting it off, but with the help of Dimitri, Malik and Harry, they all managed to freeze it in place.

Its tentacles were inches from Maelyn's face. She finally stopped singing and collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily.

"You did it!" Dimitri shouted.

Harry and Draco high-fived each other. Maelyn shakily walked out of the garden. Dimitri ran and lifted her into the air.

"I need to get started right away! Cyprian's life depends on it," Dimitri said.

"We'll help in any way we can," Harry said.

"Thank you," Dimitri said, smiling. "And Maelyn, we will get your abilities back, I promise."

"It's okay," she said, smiling. "I've accepted my fate so if it doesn't work, it's okay. As long as Cyprian gets better."

Harry sent an owl to Hermione letting her know along with a sample spore from the plant. He hoped it would help her patients. He knew that it was risky considering they didn't know much about the creature. Dimitri had to do some more tests before he finally concluded that the spore was safe in small doses and he didn't think it would make Cyprian's condition worse. Harry took the spore home and rushed up to the attic to complete the potion, which was still sitting there with a preservation charm around it.

Harry then went to St. Mungo's and entered Cyprian's room. His parents were seated around his bed.

"Harry," his mother said, rushing up to hug him. "Thank you for coming to visit."

"You're welcome. I have something that might help him."

The father stood up too. The doctors came in to observe just in case Cyprian had a bad reaction.

"I need to warn you this hasn't been tested," one of the doctors said. "It's experimental with a plant-creature that we've never studied in depth before."

"It's okay," Cyprian's mother said. "He's not going to make it otherwise. We have to try something," she said, choking on a sob.

The doctor nodded and took the potion from Harry. He then administered it to Cyprian. They all sat waiting and holding their breaths. Nothing seemed to happen. Harry was grateful that it wasn't making him worse, but it didn't seem to be doing anything at all. Suddenly Cyprian's body began to levitate. The doctors prepared their healing potions. Cyprian's mouth opened and black vapor emerged, dissipating into the air. His body then dropped back down to the bed. The main doctor ran over and waved his wand over him.

"I don't believe it. His vitals are improving."

Cyprian's mother burst into tears and suffocated Harry in a hug. The father too shook Harry's hand so hard he thought it was going to fall off. After staying for a little while to talk with them, Harry finally left. When he came out, he saw Hermione sitting in the waiting room.

"Hermione, what's wrong?"

She wiped at her eyes. "It didn't work."

"For the couple?" Harry asked.

Hermione shook her head. "It almost seemed like it was going to work, with that spore, but then that person's sperm was still destroyed. It almost worked."

"I'm so sorry," Harry said quietly.

"You should've seen the looks on their faces, Harry. They're so broken. And there's nothing I can do," Hermione said, sobbing.

Harry reached out and hugged her. "Hey, you've tried everything you could. It's not your fault."

"It's not fair! It should've worked. It helped Cyprian."

"So maybe it wasn't just the curse," Harry said.

Hermione looked up. "What do you mean?"

"Hermione…I think we can try one more thing."

She gave him a confused look. When Harry explained to her his idea, she began to cry. She threw her arms around him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_A couple days later…_

Harry slipped in just after dawn and quietly went into the kitchen. He poured the potion into a nettle juice and gulped it down.

"What are you doing?"

Harry jumped and wheeled around. "Geez, Draco, what the hell are _you_ doing? Trying to give me a heart attack?"

Draco was learning up against the doorway with his arms crossed.

"Where were you?"

"Just visiting Cyprian. Why?"

"You left really early."

"Yeah, so?"

Draco just stared at him and finally uncrossed his arms. "How's he doing?"

"His vitals have improved a lot. That means he might be able to wake up soon."

Draco nodded. He then tried to grab Harry's nettle juice to take a sip.

"Don't!" Harry exclaimed.

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "Why not?"

"Get your own," Harry said. He gulped down the rest of it.

"Fine. Whatever," Draco said.

Harry sighed heavily. "So I heard Dimitri's been spending a lot of time figuring that new creature."

"He's just trying to be thorough, you know, for his special volume that's going to come out," Draco said, sipping his own nettle juice.

Harry nodded. "I wonder what else he'll find out about it."

Draco shrugged. "Don't know. I'm just glad we get a break from assignments while he's consumed by this thing."

Harry smiled. "Yeah."

Draco set his drink down and approached him. He cornered Harry up against the wall. Harry stared at him as Draco placed his hands on either side of his head. Harry didn't move. Draco leaned down and ghosted past Harry's ear, and then he trailed his lips down his neck. Harry shut his eyes. Draco moved his lips upward toward his chin and finally up to his lips. Harry parted his lips as Draco reached them and covered them with his own. Harry wrapped his arms tightly around Draco's body, pushing him closer. Their tongues sparred for a minute before he felt Draco pull back.

"What?" Harry asked, gazing into his eyes.

"You hear that?" Draco asked.

Harry stopped momentarily. "Yeah."

They both walked into the living room to see a secure owl fluttering in the fireplace. Harry released it and it zoomed straight at him.

"It's from Hermione."

"Didn't you just see her?" Draco asked, sounding annoyed.

"Yeah," Harry said. "I hope everything's all right."

He tore it open and read it. His eyes were wide.

"Well?" Draco asked impatiently.

"Cyprian's awake."

"Oh, well that's good."

"He's asking for me."

Draco's expression darkened. "That's not so good."

Harry smiled. "Draco, Cyprian knows we're together. I don't think it's like that. He probably just wants to thank me for helping him."

Draco snorted. "As if thanking you can really do it justice."

Harry smiled and shook his head. "I'll be back soon."

He heard Draco mumble something as he went out the door. He headed to St. Mungo's and was greeted by several nurses who recognized him. He went to Cyprian's room and saw his parents talking with him. Cyprian turned toward him.

"Harry," he said in a raspy voice.

"We'll give you two a minute to catch up," Cyprian's mother said, smiling.

They both left the room after waving to Harry. Harry approached Cyprian's bedside.

"How are you feeling?"

Cyprian shrugged. "Good for what happened to me. My parents told me what happened, about…"

Harry nodded. "About Voldemort."

Cyprian winced and then nodded. "They told me what he did to me, and then they told me everything you did for me. You saved my life."

"It wasn't just me. Dimitri and everyone at Hellebore worked really hard to get that creature's spore."

"I know, but they told me about you taking me to see the centaurs and everything. You did so much for me, and all I've done is deceived you," Cyprian said, staring down at the bed.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Deceived me?"

"Harry, I need to tell you something. I don't want you to hate me. I want us to stay friends, but…"

"It's okay," Harry said.

Cyprian shook his head. "It's not okay. What I did…"

Harry waited for him to continue.

"You don't know how sorry I am now." Cyprian glanced down at the bed again. "It was me."

"You what?" Harry asked curiously.

"It was me who…," Cyprian trailed off momentarily and then gazed up at Harry. "I was the one that cursed Draco's apartment."

Harry's eyes widened. He flashed back to Draco whining about his furniture trying to suffocate him, and then to Kingsley telling them that the curses on Harry's apartment were far worse than Draco's and that his was just minor hexes that were meant to distort his appearance and cause things like nasty boils and such. It finally made sense.

"So, you…," Harry began.

"I wasn't trying to hurt him, honest," Cyprian said, as his eyes welled up. "I was just so jealous of you two together. I knew I couldn't compare to Draco. He's so attractive. So all those hexes I put on his furniture and stuff were to change that."

"You mean, like give him boils and stuff?"

Cyprian nodded slowly. "Yeah. It was supposed to turn his hair white and straggly and give him pimples and also I think a beer belly."

Harry cracked a smile. "Well that's better than what Draco thought the furniture was going to do to him."

Cyprian gazed at him in surprise. "You're not mad?"

"After everything I've been through with Draco, this is the least of my worries," Harry said. "But, what you did is still a crime."

Cyprian gazed down at the bed. "I know. I'll turn myself in."

"Let me talk to the Minister," Harry said. "I'm sure he'll go easy on you and I'll explain the situation."

"You'd do that for me, even after everything?" Cyprian asked.

"Of course," Harry said, smiling. "We're friends."

Cyprian wiped at his eyes and smiled. "Thanks, Harry. I'm really, really sorry."

"I know. It's okay, though. No one got hurt or anything. It all worked out okay."

Harry got up to leave.

"Harry?"

He turned around.

"I'm happy for you two," Cyprian said, smiling.

Harry smiled. "Thanks. I'll see you at work when you're all better."

Cyprian nodded and smiled. Harry left and flew back to the house. Draco wasn't in the living room or kitchen so Harry went up to his room and knocked.

"Yeah, what?"

Harry snorted and walked in. "That's a nice greeting."

Draco was lying on his bed reading a Quidditch journal. Of course the wizard journals had moving pictures.

"How was Cyprian?"

"Good. Er, I have to tell you something, but I don't want you to overreact."

Draco tossed the journal down and sat up. "What?"

Harry sat down on the bed. "So…you know how Kingsley said that those hexes on your apartment weren't meant to kill you or anything?"

"Yeah. So what? Does he think Voldemort did it to just scare me?"

Harry winced. "Er, actually, it wasn't Voldemort."

Draco stared at him.

"It was Cyprian."

Draco's eyes went wide. "That bloody little –"

"Remember what I said about not overreacting," Harry interrupted.

Draco glared at him. "I can't believe him! I should've known!"

"It wasn't meant to harm you, it just was meant to, you know, make you ugly."

Draco's mouth dropped open. "_Ugly_?!"

"He was just jealous of us, that's all. It's harmless."

"I'll show him ugly!" Draco snapped.

Harry jumped on top of him before he could get off the bed.

"Potter! Get off!"

"He's still healing, Draco. The Aurors at St. Mungo's are not going to let you just stomp your way in there."

Draco scowled. "Well, when he's all better I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!"

"Don't," Harry said sternly. "For me."

Draco gave him a look. "For you?"

"Please," Harry said. "I promised Cyprian we'd still be friends."

"You _what_?!" Draco snapped.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Calm down."

"Get. Off."

Harry just smiled. He bent down and captured Draco's lips in a kiss. When he pulled away, he stared into Draco's eyes.

"Wouldn't you rather spend the time more wisely?"

Draco studied him for a minute and then smirked. "Fine. But if he even looks at me cross-eyed…"

Harry smiled. "Then I give you permission to give him a piece of your mind."

Draco grabbed him and pulled him back down for a kiss. Draco then rolled over until he was on top of him. It wasn't too long before Draco forgot about the whole thing.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_

**Author's Note: **Sadly the next chapter is the last! I've really enjoyed writing this! And I hope you all have enjoyed reading it. Please let me know what you think of the ending! I will update soon!

**TO REVIEWERS: **

**Guest**: Awwww thanks so much! I'm so happy that you're liking this! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too! And I hope you like how it ends. =)

**yoshi**.**vega**: Hey! Aww, thanks so much! I'm so glad you're still liking it! Oh, wow, well good luck university hunting! Hmm, you know, I can't remember where I found the name Cyprian, but it was one of those unusual names sites and I just looked through a lot of names till I found one I liked. Thanks! Glad you like it! =) Awwwwww you're so sweet! Well I hope that my book series does at least decent, lol! As long as I get published, that's a dream come true, no matter how successful I am, but thank you! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! And Happy New Year! =)

**EllenZzzz**: Hey! Sorry I didn't realize it was you, lol! I'm so glad you're still liking it! Oh! Yes, sorry if I didn't make that clear. So even though the plant neutralized her, she still has magic deep down inside, but it's just dormant. A wand, to me anyway, is like our DNA. You know how in J.K. Rowling's books it said that the wand chooses the wizard/witch. So everyone's wand is unique and just for them, like DNA. So even though she's not an active witch anymore, her wand still recognizes her because it's a part of her. Does that make sense? And don't worry! That threesome with Jace is never going to happen, lol! Jace is just being Jace.

**LandlessLord**: Thank you! I'm so glad you like it so far! I will definitely update soon! =)

**Carling**: Yes! I was updating only once a month for a bit there, but these last few chapters thankfully have been really quick updates. I'm already part way through the next chapter, which is sadly the last one. I'm so glad that you like this story enough that you don't mind going back through it. That's always a good sign! =) I really hope you like how it ends too! Thank you and I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and I hope you have a great New Year too!

**AFLlover**: Aww than you! Me too! The next chapter will be the last, sadly, but it's been fun writing this. I'm really glad you enjoyed it. And I hope you like how it ends. =)

**MidnightShadeux**: What? Lol! I'd never kill off my beautiful Draco! I can understand though sometimes suspense causes a lot of anxiety. I'm glad you like how it's turning out so far. I hope you liked this chapter! The next chapter is sadly the last. Thanks for everything and I hope you like how it ends! =)

**Gryffindor Rat:** Awww, well thanks! I'm so glad that you liked that twist with the potion, and about the plant-creature. =) There will still be more about it. Sadly the next chapter will be the last. I'm so glad that you've enjoyed this, though. I hope you like how it ends!


	36. Epilogue

_**Luminescence**_

**Epilogue**:

_A week later…_

Harry walked into the house. He had left very early in the morning to help Hermione. He also stopped by to visit Cyprian who was finally doing much better. The past couple of days had been busy, with helping Hermione, and Harry felt like Draco had been a bit distant but he wasn't sure if that was because he had been more busy than usual.

He walked past the living room toward the kitchen.

"Where have you been?"

Harry stopped and turned, noticing that Draco was lying on the couch.

"Hey. I was with Hermione. What are you doing down here?"

"I slept here."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "All night?"

"Is something wrong with that?" Draco drawled.

"No," Harry said, walking over to him. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing," Draco said.

"Draco, come on. You're clearly upset about something."

Harry sat down on the couch next to him.

After a minute, Draco sat up. "I want you to be honest with me."

"Okay," Harry said.

"Do you really want to be together?"

"What kind of a question –"

"Do you or don't you, it's a simple question, Potter," Draco snapped.

Harry opened his mouth then closed it. "Yes, Draco. Of course I want to be with you."

"Really?" Draco drawled. "You sure there's not someone else in your life?"

"Of course not! Where are you getting this from?"

"Maybe I'm getting it from the fact that you've been sneaking off to St. Mungo's maternity ward and don't think that I'm going to believe it's because Hermione's pregnant! I saw you. You were in the couples ward."

"You followed me?" Harry asked.

"What, so you can follow me around when you're suspicious, but I can't do the same to you?" Draco shouted.

"That's not what I said! Did you hear my conversations at all?" Harry asked.

Draco pursed his lips. "I didn't go _into_ the couples ward, Potter."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Draco, what did I learn about following you around like that? I completely misinterpreted your actions, right?"

Draco crossed his arms. "So why were you there?"

"To help Hermione's patients. I was in the couple's ward because there is a couple in there trying to get pregnant, but can't because of Voldemort."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

Harry explained to him everything Hermione told him about the couple.

"So, what, you were there to hold their hand?"

Harry gave him a look. "No, Draco."

He then explained to him what he told Hermione:

_**FLASH BACK**_

"_Hermione…I think we can try one more thing."_

_Hermione gazed up at him in confusion. Harry leaned down toward her ear. _

"_I don't know if it will work, but I do know that I'm supposedly more powerful than most, and I've also got a moonstone inside of me. My sperm might be able to survive."_

_Tears began to roll down Hermione's face and she threw her arms around him. _

"_You would really do that?" She sobbed. _

_Harry held her tightly. "I would. I mean, after the first time you told me about them, I started to think."_

_Hermione pulled away and wiped at her eyes. "About what?"_

"_About the fact that I'm the last of my line. And I'm not going to be marrying Ginny anymore so…"_

"_So there's no way to pass on your genes."_

_Harry nodded. "I mean, I know it's selfish, but in some way I would feel like Voldemort would win if I didn't pass it down in some way or another. He's always wanted to kill the last Potter so that the Potter line ends, and with me being with Draco, there's really no other option anyway. So to be honest, this would help me as much as it would help them."_

_Hermione smiled. "You're the best friend anyone could ask for."_

_She threw her arms around him again. "Come on."_

_She grabbed his hand and led him down the hall toward the maternity ward. She came through to the couples ward and knocked on one of the rooms. She then entered. Harry saw a young woman sitting on a flexible bed. She had long light brown hair and hazel eyes. Her husband, who was seated in a plush chair next to her, was holding her hand. He had dark brown hair, freckles, and blue eyes. They glanced up. _

"_Hey Alia, how are you feeling?"_

"_Hermione," Alia said, wiping her eyes. "Thank you for not giving up, but I just don't know how much more disappointment I can take."_

_Hermione swallowed and nodded. "Alia, Trenton, I'd like you to meet a very close friend of mine. Harry Potter."_

_Both their heads shot up. _

"_H-Harry…," Alia trailed off. _

"_Hi," Harry said, awkwardly. _

"_As you know Harry is a very powerful wizard and we're hoping," Hermione said, glancing at Harry, "that his sperm will be able to survive."_

_Alia's mouth dropped open. "You'd…you'd really…for us?"_

_Alia began to tear up. _

"_Thank you," Trenton said. _

"_I can't guarantee that it will work," Hermione said, "but considering all the times Harry's defeated Voldemort, we're hoping that he can help."_

_Alia and Trenton both nodded wordlessly. _

"_Harry will undergo the spells after we give his body a couple days of healing potions and immune boosts, to make sure he's strong, just like we did to the others. Then after that, as you know, we will have to take Trenton's sperm and combine it with Harry's and let it sit overnight. After that we can inseminate Alia with it and hopefully it will work."_

_Alia nodded. "Okay. Thank you so much."_

_Harry nodded. "I just hope it works."_

_Trenton squeezed Alia's hand in agreement. _

_**END FLASH BACK **_

Harry waited for the explosion to happen, but when he glanced up Draco was staring at him calmly.

"So…that's what happened," Harry said slowly.

Draco looked deep in thought.

"Draco?"

The blond blinked out of his daze. "Hmm?"

"Are you…mad?"

"No, actually, I should've realized you were off doing heroic things again," Draco said.

Harry gave him an annoyed look. "Thanks."

Draco snorted. "So, do you know if it worked yet?"

"Alia's insemination is tomorrow. We'll know right afterwards if it worked."

"That quickly?" Draco asked.

"Yeah, with their new spells that they have now they can actually watch the egg and sperm from within her and see if it fertilizes it or not."

"Weird," Draco said. "So you're going to be a father?"

Harry gave him a pained look. "Don't say it like that, please. I mean, it will have some of my genetics, yes, but it will have both of theirs, too. Besides, I didn't just do it for them."

Draco gazed at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, that I want to be with you. And I also don't want to be the last Potter."

"Oh," Draco said, looking away in embarrassment. "Sorry."

Harry smiled. "I'm not. This is the best of both worlds. I get to pass on my genes without the responsibility of being a father."

"Wow, Potter, that's rich," Draco drawled.

Harry laughed. "Yeah, and I get to stay with you. It's a win win."

Draco looked a bit surprised and then glanced away.

"I'm going to go take a shower. I've got to get up pretty early. You can come if you want to."

Draco shrugged. "It's okay. You can tell me about it."

Harry nodded and went upstairs, thankful that Draco wasn't upset. The blond seemed deep in thought about something.

The next morning Harry went to St. Mungo's. He was incredibly nervous so he couldn't imagine how Alia and Trenton felt. He was escorted down the hall towards the procedure ward. Hermione was waiting for him.

"She's all ready. You can watch with me."

Harry swallowed nervously and nodded. He followed her into a small room, which was attached to the adjoining room where Alia lay on the table. There was a cloth over her stomach and she looked to be asleep. Trenton was right beside her. They could see the both of them clearly, although Trenton couldn't see them. They were standing beside the doctor who was murmuring spells which then had a 3D image of inside Alia's body. There was a doctor in the room with them who was about to administer the procedure. The doctor pulled out the vial that had melded Harry and Trenton's sperm together. Using magic, they directed it up inside Alia, although they couldn't see that, thankfully, as a sheet was covering her lower half.

Harry watched the 3D screen in front of them seeing the sperm swimming up toward the eggs. He watched as this black mist formed around it. He clenched his hand by his side. Harry couldn't help it. He shut his eyes.

"Harry?"

Harry opened them and stared at Hermione.

"Sorry. It's just a lot of pressure."

"I understand," Hermione said, smiling. "Shall we go tell them the good news?"

Harry blinked several times. He glanced at the doctor who was smiling widely and then back at Hermione whose eyes had begun to shimmer.

"It worked?"

Hermione nodded quickly as her lip trembled. She hugged Harry tightly before grasping his hand and pulling him toward the room where Alia and Trenton were. They knocked and then entered. Alia looked a bit groggy because she had just woken up. Trenton stood up the second they entered. Hermione walked toward them.

She inhaled deeply and her lips trembled again. "I have some good news."

Alia cupped a hand over her mouth as tears streamed down her face. Trenton sat back down in his seat looking stunned.

"It worked? It really worked?" He asked.

Hermione smiled and wiped at her eyes. "You're going to have a baby."

Alia began to sob uncontrollably and Trenton hugged her tightly. Then Trenton went over and hugged Hermione. He then stared at Harry and went over and hugged him too.

"Thank you so much Mr. Potter."

"Call me Harry," he said.

Trenton smiled. "You have no idea what you've done for us. We can't ever repay you."

Alia wiped at her eyes. "You're welcome to visit him or her any time you want."

Harry smiled. "I'd like that."

Alia got up off the table and hugged Harry, sobbing onto his shoulder. Harry patted her back awkwardly. Then Alia hugged Hermione. The two of them began sobbing together and Harry and Trenton just smiled at one another.

By the time Harry returned home he was exhausted.

"Draco?" He called out.

No answer.

Harry sighed and went to make himself something to eat. A couple hours later he heard Draco come in. Harry was lying on the couch drinking a nettle juice.

"Hey," Harry said, sitting up.

Draco nodded tiredly. "Hey. How did it go?"

"Very well, actually."

"So…?"

"Yeah, so, I guess a child is going to be born and it's going to have some of me in it," Harry said. "It's so weird to think about."

Draco snorted. "Yeah. So how much of you will be in it?"

Harry shrugged. "Don't know. Hermione says it's impossible to tell until the child's born. It's just…"

"What?"

"I don't know if it worked because I really am powerful, or if it's because the moonstone effected my body."

"What does that matter?" Draco asked.

Harry shrugged. "They probably think it's because I'm the famous Harry Potter, but if I hadn't bonded with a moonstone, it might not have worked."

Draco sighed. "That's seriously bothering you? Look. If the child comes out with super whacky abilities, then maybe it was the moonstone, at least partly. If the child's normal, it was probably just you. You are powerful, even without the moonstone and I think you've proven that a lot."

Harry smiled. "Thanks."

Draco nodded silently. "I have something to tell you."

Harry sat up completely. "What is it?"

Draco hesitated and sat down on the couch. "After what you told me, about the couple, it got me thinking." Draco hesitated again. "About how I'm the last Malfoy as well."

Harry's heart skipped a beat. "Oh…are you going to help the maternity ward?"

"No," Draco said, glancing down at his hands.

Harry's heart began to pound. "Draco, what…," Harry trailed off, unable to finish. He felt like he had been smacked in the face.

"So, here's the thing," Draco said, finally. "I made an agreement with my mum. One you may not like."

Harry swallowed.

"I promised her, and my father, that I'd…," he hesitated.

"_What_? Just say it," Harry said.

Draco shut his eyes momentarily. "I'd give them my sperm."

"Oh, thank Merlin," Harry said, looking relieved.

Draco opened his mouth. "Thank Merlin? What kind of reaction is that? You _want_ me to give my sperm away, to my parents no less?"

"No, I just, it's not that," Harry said, smiling. "I thought you were going to break up with me."

Draco looked surprised then he smirked. "I know you can't live without me, Potter."

"Shut up. So…I guess I'm confused. Are they going to take your sperm and inseminate someone?"

"Not just anyone," Draco said. "Astoria."

Harry's eyebrows rose. "Daphne's younger sister?"

Draco nodded. "Apparently Daphne wanted to go her own separate way, too, but Astoria wants to make her parents proud by continuing the pure blood line."

"So she's okay with being a single mother?"

"She's not going to be doing it on her own," Draco said. "My father is already on board with this. He probably thinks this child will be better than me."

Draco glanced downward. Harry went over and wrapped his arms around him.

"No one could be better than you."

Draco snorted. "Yeah. Right. Anyway, that's the new agreement. It makes my parents happy, it makes them on good terms with the Greengrass family again, and my mum promised me that she would make sure this child is happy and that, you know, it won't suffer the same abuse from father as I did."

"Well, that's something," Harry said. "We'll both get to continue our legacies."

"There's one other thing."

Harry raised his eyebrows.

Draco inhaled deeply. "My mum wants me to come around and visit her."

"Okay. Why is that bad?"

"I wasn't sure you'd be okay with me keeping in touch with my family, you know, after everything they did."

"Draco," Harry said, placing a hand over his, "they're your parents. We may not ever be on great terms, but I'm fine with you being in touch with them. Besides, Lucius is never going to be able to do any of the bad things he's done before. The Ministry is keeping a close eye on them both, so I'm not worried."

Draco's expression lightened. Harry smiled at him.

"How did your meeting go with Kingsley?" Draco asked.

"Oh, you mean, about Cyprian? He said that he'll just put Cyprian on probation for a few months. That's it. Cyprian's already so sorry about it that he confessed to his parents first and they were pretty upset about it, but I told them that I'm not angry."

"Well I'm angry."

Harry smiled. "That's no surprise. Hey, are you ever going to turn in that favor you earned so long ago?"

Draco looked away briefly. "I'm saving it."

"For what?"

Draco shrugged. "So you think Maelyn will get her powers back?"

"Well, I know Dimitri's preparing a tonic for her with the plant's spores. He wanted to study it a little first."

"Why? I mean, Tess was healed by it," Draco said.

"Yeah, but she nearly lost her powers and then her hair nearly turned white permanently because we didn't know the proper dosage. She's just lucky, but Maelyn has had that venom in her system for a lot longer. Dimitri has to be careful," Harry said.

"I think it would've been wicked if her hair turned white."

Harry snorted. "Well, it's not exactly _in style_."

Draco turned and gave him a look.

"What? It was just a joke."

Draco rolled his eyes and walked off.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_3 months later…_

Harry walked into Hellebore and headed to the garden floor. Dimitri and Maelyn were there as well as Lieda.

"Harry!" Maelyn exclaimed. She waved her wand around her and floated down to him.

Harry grinned and gave her a hug. "How does it feel to be a witch again?"

Maelyn twirled around as wisps of magic emanated from her wand. "You have no idea! Dimitri's the best."

Dimitri smiled down at her and she blushed.

"So I heard the good news about you."

"What?" Harry asked.

Maelyn elbowed him. "You're going to be a father."

"Hey, now, it's not exactly like that."

Maelyn laughed. "I'm just teasing you. I think it's amazing what you're doing for that couple. Of course, if I was that husband, I'd be a little intimidated by the famous Harry Potter being my child's donor, but I'm sure his ego is recuperating."

Harry smiled and shook his head. "He seems cool with it. I think they're just happy to be able to have a child."

"Yeah, but probably with that curse only a tiny fraction of the husband's genes will be passed down. I think your genes will be dominant," she said, winking. "Of course, that's probably what they're hoping for."

"What?" Harry said, cocking his head. "Why?"

"_Why_? Harry, come on. You're like one of the most powerful wizards in history. Anybody would want to have your offspring. Think about how famous that child's going to be."

"Alia and Trenton say they're keeping it quiet. They don't want their child to grow up being treated differently."

Maelyn smiled. "How long is that going to last? Especially once the kid starts producing amazing magic at such a young age. I can only imagine what he or she will do at Hogwarts."

"Oh, you know, cause trouble, be a nuisance."

Harry turned around to see Draco walking toward them. Maelyn laughed. "Hey Draco."

"Are you calling me a nuisance?" Harry shot back.

"If the shoe fits," Draco retorted with a smirk. Harry glared at him. He was getting Harry back from calling him a drama queen.

"Clever. Using my own words against me," Harry said.

"You two are something else," Maelyn said, laughing. "So, Harry, do you know if it's going to be a boy or girl?"

"They want it to be a surprise."

"No, they don't," Draco said. "They just don't want to be disappointed when it comes out a girl."

"Why would you think that?" Harry asked.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Clearly they want it to be a little Harry Potter."

"You don't know that!"

"Awww. I'd want a little Harry Potter," Maelyn cooed.

Harry glared at her.

"What about you? Is yours a boy or girl?" Harry shot back.

Maelyn gasped. "Draco, you're fathering a child, too?"

"It's a complicated situation," Draco said, glaring at Harry. "And I don't know either."

"You two are so sweet to help those in need," Maelyn said. "It's such a shame you two can't father one together…," she said, winking.

Harry's eyebrows rose up into his bangs.

"That's not how it works," Draco said, looking amused.

"But wouldn't that child be so cute?!" Maelyn exclaimed.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah. Take it up with nature."

Maelyn just laughed and walked back to where Dimitri was up on the platform.

"How's your mum?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged. "She's fine. She and my father are busy preparing for their new heir so."

Harry put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I didn't want that life anyway," Draco said. "It's just weird that it's going to be my kid, technically, but I won't be raising it."

"Do you want to raise it?"

Draco made a pained expression. "Not really. I'm not really the fathering type or the settling down type, I guess. I mean, I want to go on adventures and see the world and kids just…they just tie you down. I don't know. It's just not for me."

Harry smiled. "Yeah. I feel the same."

Draco glanced at him for a minute and then snorted. "I'm surprised. I kind of thought you'd be the family sort of guy."

"I used to think so, too," Harry said. "I guess things change."

"Look. I know you usually go to the Weasleys for Christmas. My mum wants me to support the family and at least show my face on holidays. So…we can always celebrate Christmas together either before or after," Draco said, shrugging.

Harry shook his head. "How about this? We spend Christmas Eve with one of them, and Christmas day with the other."

Draco glanced up. "You'd want to come to my family's?"

"We're together, right? So we should act like a couple. Besides, I kind of want to rub it in your father's face anyway."

Draco snorted. "Don't get him all riled up." Draco shrugged. "I guess I'll ask my mum what she prefers."

"Draco! Harry!"

They both glanced up to see Dimitri coming down to greet them.

"Hey Dimitri, how's it going?" Harry asked.

"Splendid!"

"We've noticed," Draco said, glancing up at Maelyn.

Dimitri flushed. "Oh yes, well, also I've made progress with the Veluferia Potenium. It's an amazing creature! I've discovered that in combination with the Draught of Peace and some other ingredients, it makes a potent shield charm. I think with some work it could prove to be stronger than even the protections around Hogwarts and the Ministry."

"Kingsley will love that," Harry said, smiling. "The more prepared we are in case of a rebellion of any stray Death Eaters or Dark Lord supporters out there, the better."

Dimitri nodded. "Indeed. Oh! I wanted to show you the cover of the special volume, a little sneak peak, if you will."

He summoned the cover and they peered at it: _**Rare and Mythical Plant-Creatures. **_Harry's eyes looked to the bottom where it read: _**Dedicated to Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. **_

"Wow," Harry whispered. "Thanks, Dimitri."

Draco nodded in agreement.

"You both deserve it for all your hard work," Dimitri said, patting them both on the shoulder. "I know the holidays are coming up so I won't have an assignment for you until after the New Year."

"Thank Merlin," Draco said with a sigh. "That last assignment was a real pain."

"Well, thankfully, you didn't fall into that volcano," Dimitri said.

"Yes, bright side," Draco drawled sarcastically.

Harry grinned. "We'll be ready by then."

"Good! I'm going to release the special volume on New Year's day."

Dimitri went back up with Maelyn and Draco and Harry went back home. At home they turned on the fireplace now that it was cold outside and ate dinner side by side on the same couch.

"I can't believe how much has happened in just one year," Harry said quietly.

Draco stared at the fire and sighed. "Yeah."

Harry turned to him. "Can I ask you a question?"

Draco turned to face him. "What?"

"When did you…you know…," Harry trailed off.

Draco just raised an eyebrow curiously.

"When did you realize you had feelings for me?"

"Oh," Draco said, staring back at the fire. "That's a complicated question."

"It is? Why?" Harry asked.

Draco adjusted his position on the couch. "Because…," he trailed off and then shrugged. "I've had feelings for you for a while."

"You mean like before we even started living together?" Harry asked curiously.

Draco snorted. "No. Like…even before we graduated."

Harry's eyes widened. "What? Like back at Hogwarts?"

Draco shrugged.

"No way! You totally hated me back then!" Harry exclaimed.

"I didn't hate you, exactly," Draco said.

"Well what, then?"

Draco turned to him. "Does it really matter?"

"Yes! I want to know!" Harry exclaimed. "Please?"

Draco sighed. "Fine. I think I realized it…in fourth year during the Triwizard Tournament."

Harry sat up. "Really? Why then?"

Draco shrugged. "I knew that I hated you because of how popular you were, how famous you were even though it didn't seem like there was much to you. And then things started happening every year with you, like the Chamber of Secrets and all that. Then you became an amazing Quidditch player. It was like everything you did you just had natural talent and I hated that. When you were in the Triwizard Tournament I was hoping at first something bad would happen to you. I was hoping you'd at least lose. When everything happened, when Cedric came back dead and then later I heard that you had tried to protect him, and you were going to let him win, I don't know…I just felt _something_."

Harry listened to him intently and scooted closer to him.

"I think that deep down I knew that I liked you. I tried to deny it for so long. That's why in my fifth year I took Pansy to the dance. I was trying to convince myself that I could be with a girl that my parents would approve of. And I also did it to try and escape my other feelings."

"Your other feelings?"

Draco shrugged. "I've wavered between being attracted to both guys and girls. I've been more attracted to girls, but back in school I was attracted to Blake. I wanted to pretend like those feelings didn't exist so I tried hard to be with Pansy, but she was just so bloody annoying, it made it impossible. I think if I wasn't already attracted to some guys, I would've turned gay after being with her."

Harry laughed. "Yeah. She was pretty bad."

"I remember that night in my house when you were taken captive, I was afraid. I knew they were going to kill you, or that they were going to torture you and hand you over to Voldemort. I didn't want that to happen and I thought it was because you had saved me, you and Dumbledore, but it was more than that, I think. You know, I sometimes wonder if Voldemort knew about my feelings for you. Maybe that's why he wanted to see me fail. Maybe it wasn't just to punish my father, but to punish me for having these feelings."

Harry reached out a hand and brushed his fingers across Draco's face. Draco glanced at him momentarily.

"After we graduated and after everything that happened, I figured I'd never see you again. I managed to forget my feelings for a little while. I distracted myself with other people, like Jace, but I couldn't fake it, you know. I couldn't allow myself to be with anybody completely because I was searching for someone who was…," Draco trailed off, "as amazing as you. And it's not easy to find."

Harry leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You're amazing, too."

Draco snorted. "Right."

"You are, Draco," Harry said sternly. "You don't see it because you're too busy comparing yourself to other people, but you _are_ amazing."

Draco gazed at him. The fire flickered in the reflection of his eyes.

"I would've never realized how amazing you were, if we hadn't bumped into each other and been forced to work together. So I'm grateful for that."

"Even though you have to go through being a donor just to not be the last Potter?" Draco murmured.

"That doesn't matter to me," Harry said. "Being with you is all that matters."

Draco gazed at him with wide eyes. They stared at one another for a second before they leaned in. Draco's warm lips covered his own and Harry slid a hand through his hair, bringing him closer. They broke away gently and Harry opened his eyes, gazing deeply into Draco's. Their noses brushed together.

"So when did you notice you had feelings for me?" Draco asked curiously.

Harry smiled and pulled back a little. "Well, like you, I was kind of making excuses and not realizing how I was feeling at first."

Draco leaned back against the couch. "When was that?"

"I'm trying to think exactly when it started. I think…it might have been when I saw you there sitting all by yourself on Christmas Eve. I felt something, too. And then there were times when you were really nice to me, like talking to me on the train, or coming with me to the Ministry or even teaching me to swim. In those moments I felt like I was getting to know the real you."

Draco snorted. "I can't believe you didn't know how to swim."

"And then other times your annoying personality ruins the moment," Harry said. "Anyway, I definitely noticed it when we were living together, especially after that dream."

"Dream?" Draco asked.

"Er, yeah…after I took that potion, you sort of had a dream about kissing me and I was there and it kind of took me by surprise."

Draco's mouth fell open. "You never mentioned this before!"

"I was too embarrassed," Harry said, scratching his head. "I thought maybe you had that dream just because you were gay or something and I was just conveniently there, but then when you did stuff for me and then when you tried to kiss me…it just sort of all happened. I wasn't sure how I felt at first so when we made the deal to date I thought that I was just agreeing because I didn't want you to move out and not want to be partners anymore. I realize now that it's because I didn't want to lose you," Harry said.

Draco stared at him quietly.

"I didn't realize it was romantic until we kissed again."

"So you didn't really want to date?"

"That's the thing, I think that I did and I was trying to justify it in my mind," Harry said. "I guess I didn't want to admit I had feelings for you, not even to myself."

Draco snorted in amusement. "Wow. You're worse than I am."

Harry smiled. "Only sometimes."

Harry then pressed his body up against Draco's and leaned his head beside his while he watched the fire. He could feel Draco watching him for a minute before he too turned back to the fire.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Christmas Eve…_

Harry stared up at Malfoy Manor as it loomed above him. There was a part of him that really didn't want to be there, but he was doing it for Draco. He followed behind Draco to the front entrance. Draco placed his hand against the door. After a split second, it opened. The main entryway was as large as Harry remembered it. As he walked through he saw a gremlin walk by muttering to itself in an incomprehensible language. The whole time Harry was wondering why they hadn't at least put some Christmas decorations up to make it look more inviting.

They walked down the long hallway through the tall oak doors that led to the dining room. There sitting at the table was both Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy. They both glanced up as they entered. Lucius' gaze landed on Harry and he scowled menacingly.

"Mother, father," Draco greeted formally.

Harry gave Mrs. Malfoy a small smile. She just raised an eyebrow slightly. Harry didn't even bother trying to be polite to Lucius. He could care less.

"What is _he_ doing here?" Lucius spat.

Harry just rolled his eyes and attempted to ignore him. Draco didn't even bother to comment. He just ignored him as well. He sat down across from his mother and next to his father, who was at the head of the table. Harry sat down next to him.

"Bringing a Gryffindor in this house is absolute blasphemy," Lucius said coldly.

Nobody seemed to want to comment. There was a tension in the air that made it hard to breathe.

"If it makes you feel better, I was almost in Slytherin," Harry said coolly.

Narcissa turned toward him as well as Draco. Lucius just laughed with disgust.

"_You_? That's pathetic, Potter!"

"I speak Parseltongue, which is something not even a pureblood like yourself can do," Harry retorted hotly.

Lucius' expression turned to one of rage.

"And?" Narcissa asked curiously.

"Well, the sorting hat told me I'd do great in Slytherin. It couldn't seem to decide between the two so I chose for it," Harry said.

"You never told me that," Draco said.

Harry turned to him and shrugged. "I forgot about it, actually."

"How interesting," Narcissa said, sipping her wine.

"Please," Lucius sneered. "It's revolting. I'm glad you didn't disgrace the Slytherin name."

Harry was grateful that gremlins soon brought out a tray of wine, which he took immediately. This was going to be a long evening.

"Draco, your father and I were discussing bringing back your own vault within ours at Gringotts."

"We haven't finished discussing it, Narcissa," Lucius said coolly.

Narcissa glanced at him briefly.

"It's fine," Draco said, shrugging. "I have my own vault right now."

Narcissa just nodded curtly. There was a lapse of silence. To Harry's relief the gremlins came out with the food. One of them nearly spilt it over Narcissa's lap but the look on her face sent it running back toward the kitchen. The meal itself was rather good, although Harry was too uncomfortable to really enjoy what he was eating.

"How is that job of yours, Draco? Still finding it…up to taste?" Narcissa asked.

"Yes, mother. It's a really great job. Actually, me and Harry are being published in the next volume that comes out because of our amazing finds," Draco explained, as Lucius' expression darkened. "It will really boost our reputation."

Narcissa made a face of slight approval. It was hard to tell.

"And I make plenty of money from it, more than enough," Draco said.

"Well, that should be expected for a Malfoy," Narcissa said.

"Plus my reputation has improved by helping to stop Voldemort," Draco said.

Harry nearly choked on his wine. He thought for sure Narcissa would be appalled but she just sipped her wine.

"I did receive some sort of thank you or congratulatory owl from the Ministry for that," Narcissa said.

Lucius clenched his fist and banged it on the table. "Are we going to sit here and insult Lord Voldemort?!"

"Yes," Harry said.

"Shut your mouth, Potter!" Lucius snarled. "You're not welcome here!"

"There's nothing we can do, Lucius. Lord Voldemort is dead now and we have obligations to our family," Narcissa said.

"There's plenty we can do! For starters, not inviting _Harry Potter_ into our house!"

"Father, whether or not you like it Harry and I are partners, and we're together," Draco said firmly. "Already siding with him has improved my life greatly, both financially and with my reputation. And being loyal to Voldemort doesn't do anything for anybody with him dead so I don't see the point. You can sit there and insult Harry as much as you want to, but he's still going to be here."

Lucius didn't even look Draco in the eye. Lucius suddenly unclenched his fist and straightened up. He then turned to Narcissa.

"I can't wait for the new addition to the family. He'll be a _real_ Malfoy. With greatness and a respect for his origins," Lucius commented coldly, ignore both Harry and Draco completely.

Narcissa turned to him but didn't say anything. Harry clenched his fist.

"It will be nice to have an actual child of ours, don't you agree, Narcissa?"

Draco's head was bent down towards his plate.

"Lucius, I think you better shut up," Harry said coldly, "before you make me mad."

Lucius just ignored him. "When this child comes –"

"You want to know what I think?" Harry said, raising his voice enough to get their attention. "You don't want a great son," Harry said.

"Don't tell me what I want," Lucius spat.

"Shut. Up." Harry's eyes narrowed and the whole table began to shake.

Lucius took his arms off the table as if they were burned. He then glanced at Harry in slight astonishment. Narcissa just picked up her wine glass calmly so it wouldn't spill.

"You don't want a great son, because you clearly have one and can't even see it," Harry said coolly.

Draco gazed up at him.

"The truth is you want a child who's going to be obedient and great enough to be able to do everything you want them to, but you don't want them to be better than you, because you can't live without being able to control and tower over people to make yourself feel superior. And what irks you most is that Draco's way more of a wizard than you'll ever be."

Lucius scowled and Harry saw out of the corner of his eye Narcissa's lips curl into a slight smirk.

"I'll have you know, Potter, that –"

"Lucius, that's enough," Narcissa interrupted coldly. "If you're going to throw a tantrum, you can do it somewhere else. I'm trying to eat in peace."

Clenching his fists, Lucius scowled darkly, shoved his chair backward until it fell over, and then stormed out of the room.

Narcissa just turned to Draco calmly. "Unfortunately, Draco, your father and Mr. Greengrass have come to the conclusion that they think it would be confusing for you to be around the child, in case it senses its relation to you. I told Lucius that if he wants to be that tyrannical then there will have to be times when the child isn't here so you can visit. I think it's rather much, but I made it clear to him that you're still welcome in this house."

"Thanks, mum," Draco muttered. "Honestly, it's okay if I don't see him, or her."

"Nonsense. Lucius isn't the one who wants to spend a lot of the actual raising time with them, so I'm sure I'll have plenty of visiting time with them. You're welcome to visit any time."

Draco smiled softly and nodded. The meal went a lot better after that. Before dessert came out, however, Draco relieved himself from the table to go to the restroom, leaving Harry alone with Narcissa. Harry couldn't even use magic to refill his glass of wine since their house was still under anti-magic spells from the Ministry. He sat trying to look anywhere except for her. The silence was almost deafening and Harry kept praying Draco would hurry up.

"I'm glad you see his worth."

Harry blinked in surprise and glanced at her. It took him a second to realize who she was referring to.

"Of course I do. It's been difficult, though, getting _him_ to see that, no thanks to Lucius," Harry muttered coolly.

Narcissa just stared ahead. "Well," she said calmly, not even looking at him, "he has you so I'm not worried."

Harry gazed at her in surprise just as Draco walked back in. Narcissa excused herself from the table. Once she left, Draco turned to him.

"Were you and my mum talking?" Draco asked.

"Er, yeah."

"I mean, _civilly_?"

Harry smiled. "Yes, actually, we were."

Draco closed his mouth. "Wow. Christmas miracles do happen."

"Shut up," Harry said, laughing.

"I'm sorry about, you know," Draco said.

"I'm sorry, too," Harry said, reaching out to place a hand over his.

Narcissa came back a few minutes later and Harry quickly removed his hand. He was quite sure she saw, though she didn't say anything or make any strange expressions. She asked Draco more about his job and it was more relaxing to just sit and listen. The rest of the night Harry didn't see Lucius, for which he was grateful.

When they were finally ready to leave, Narcissa gave Draco a hug and then surprisingly offered a hand out to Harry. He glanced at it in surprise and then smiled and shook her hand. She then nodded toward them and closed the door.

As they walked away from the entrance, Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, we survived," Draco said.

"Barely," Harry teased. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Draco said. "I never expected my father to be supportive."

Harry nodded slowly.

"Hopefully the Weasleys will be a tad better," Draco said.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Let's hope so."

The next day was Christmas Day and they both dressed up nicely and wore their new robes. Mrs. Weasley answered the door when they knocked.

"Oh, Harry! Draco, come in," she said, gesturing.

Harry walked in and Mrs. Weasley hugged him tightly.

Draco nodded to her as he passed her and Mrs. Weasley offered a hand to take their robes.

"I'm just finishing up the last bit," she said.

"For the third or fourth helping?" Harry asked, smiling.

Mrs. Weasley just smiled back. "Well, you won't go hungry here, that's for sure. Ron and the others are in the living room. Why don't you two join them."

Harry glanced at Draco and saw that he looked nervous.

"What's wrong?"

"It was one thing to come here as your partner, but now as…," Draco trailed off. "I'm not sure how they're going to react."

"Well, even if they're reacting pretty bad on the inside, unlike your father they're pretty good about containing it," Harry said, patting his back.

Draco just snorted. "Gee, thanks."

They both walked into the living room. The Weasleys had expanded it to twice the size, probably with the new bonuses after Voldemort's final defeat. There was a huge 3D spell on the wall playing the Quidditch championship. Ron, Bill and Charlie were in front of it screaming profanities. Ginny, her boyfriend, Triton, Hermione, Luna, Neville and George were sitting around talking. The girls were sitting close together engaged in conversation and the boys seemed to be talking about something else. Ron glanced up when they entered. Harry saw a slight pained expression on his face, but Ginny got up and ran over to embrace him.

"Harry! It's so good to see you!" She exclaimed.

"Hi, Draco," she said.

"Hi," Draco said. He was suddenly enveloped in a hug by her. The look on his face made Harry smile.

Harry glanced over to see that Ron's mouth had fallen open. Hermione came up and hugged Harry. Hermione hesitated for a split second before reaching out to hug Draco briefly. Surprisingly, Draco patted her back in response. It wasn't a full-on hug, but it made Harry smile. Triton came over and introduced himself again and shook their hands. Neville came and gave Harry a one-armed hug and shook Draco's hand. As they walked over, Bill, Charlie and George reached out to pat his back. They also greeted Draco. Charlie, who had met Draco when they went to on the trip together, shook Draco's hand. Luna smiled at both of them as they came by. Harry and Draco sat down near Triton and Neville.

"So, Neville, how was your trip with the herbology expert?" Harry asked.

"Oh, it was great! And then of course I come back and find out you've discovered the rarest and mysterious plant-creature."

Harry scratched the back of his head. "It wasn't just me," he said, gesturing to Draco.

"Don't blame it on me," Draco said.

Neville laughed. "Well, I'm excited to read both volumes."

"So, Draco, is it true you used to be a Death Eater?" Triton asked.

All heads turned in their direction. Harry's eyes widened a bit. Triton glanced around at everyone.

"What? I'm curious."

Ginny just stifled a laugh.

"Yeah," Draco finally answered.

"Whoa. Wicked."

Draco just raised an eyebrow in response.

"DINNER!" Mrs. Weasley called out.

"Ooo yes!" George exclaimed. "I've been starving myself all day for this meal!"

"You're such a liar," Ginny said. "I saw you eating some frosted reinbiti bites."

"I have no idea what you've been drinking, Gin, but clearly you're out of your mind," George said with a completely serious face.

Mr. Weasley popped his head in. "I saw you eating it too, George."

"Dad!" George whined. "You're not supposed to take sides!"

Ginny just grinned widely. They all went into the dining room. Draco stuck close to Harry's side and didn't say much. He sat next to him and all through dinner tried to keep his head down so as not to get spoken to.

"So, Harry, Draco, I've heard the good news about Hellebore," Mr. Weasley said.

Draco tentatively glanced up.

"It sounds like you two are really doing amazing things there."

"Yeah, they're going to run every other herbology company out of business," George said with a grin.

Harry just smiled at glanced at Draco. He could tell Draco was pleased although the blond still kept quiet.

"I can see that happening," Neville said. "I've never seen Hellebore do so well."

Mrs. Weasley nodded in agreement.

"So, Draco, how are your parents taking your personality swap?" George piped up.

"George Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.

"What? It's a perfectly legitimate question," George said.

"You don't need to make Draco feel unwelcome," Mr. Weasley added.

"Yeah, George," Ginny shot back.

"Oh, trust me, you guys are ten times better than what we had to deal with yesterday," Harry said, glancing at Draco who just nodded.

"Oh, that's right, you went over to Malfoy Manor," Hermione said. "And I take it that didn't go well?"

Harry and Draco exchanged looks.

"My father threw a tantrum and left the dinner table," Draco said finally.

That caused a round of laughter of everyone around the table, including Ron. Draco just smiled slightly in response.

"Well, let him throw his tantrums," Mrs. Weasley said. "You two are doing just fine."

"So, now that you two have discovered one semi-rare Blue Snufflelupagus," George began, causing Harry to burst into laughter, "and a bloody strange plant-thingy with teeth, which was connected to the long lost witch that you two brought back, what in the world are you going to do now?"

"Don't forget finding the Onyx Dragon," Ginny piped up.

"The what?" Neville asked with wide eyes. "When did this happen?"

"Oh, golly, how could I forget?" George said with a roll of his eyes. "While you're at it, why don't you find The Black and Gold Griffin."

Everyone around the table laughed except for Harry who looked back and forth.

"What's that?"

Everyone stopped laughing and turned to him.

"You haven't heard the story?" Ron asked. "Blimey, Harry, I thought you would've heard it by now."

Harry glanced up at him, glad that Ron was talking to him normally again. "Well, what is it?"

"I think Harry should do some homework and write a parchment on it," George said, nodding his head.

Draco snorted in amusement causing another grin from George.

"Harry, it's a myth," Hermione said. "Kind of like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster."

"What about her?" George asked.

"Oh, it's what the muggles call her," Mr. Weasley said. "They also call her another funny name, uh…"

"Nessie," Hermione said.

Ron burst into laughter. "That's ridiculous! Her name's Aramintamiana, or Aramay for short."

Harry laughed. "Like _that's_ not ridiculous!"

"Anyway, Harry, it's a legend, that's all it is," Mr. Weasley said.

"Oy, give Harry and Draco a couple weeks, they might prove you wrong," George said.

Everyone laughed, including Draco.

"Griffins are exceptionally rare as it is, but a black and gold griffin is supposedly a very powerful and rather indestructible species of Griffin," Mr. Weasley explained. "Supposedly, according to legend, this griffin stood by Merlin's side during his great battles and also supposedly was said to have helped forge Godric's sword with its own innate magic, which is supposedly why the sword is so strong and can break pretty much anything. Nobody's actually seen it or have had any mention of it being witnessed during Godric's time or anything, but it's told to children growing up to remind them that good triumphs over evil and that if you're bad and you get on the Griffin's bad side, he'll come and get you and take you away."

Harry smiled. "Sounds interesting."

"There's only stories and songs about it, nothing concrete at all so don't get any ideas," George said.

"Oh, too late," Harry said.

Draco just rolled his eyes. "Great."

"Well, they need some sort of challenge so they don't get bored," Neville said, smiling. "After all, they just started working there. It's their first year there. They have to have something to do for the coming years."

"Good point, Neville," Ginny said, nudging him.

Luna smiled and stared out ahead of her. "Besides, it is real."

Everyone turned to look at her. Luna just pushed her hair behind her ear and hummed a tune softly.

"Luna, what do you mean? Have you seen it?" Ginny asked.

"Oh, no, not myself, but the fraeglins have told me all about it."

George made a crazy motion with his fingers and Mr. Weasley shot him a look. Harry just smiled at Luna.

"Well, Luna, if the fraeglins ever tell you anything else about them, let me know."

Luna turned and smiled at him. "Okay, Harry."

A little while later after eating, they all went back into the living room for butterbeer and opening presents.

"And here you are, Draco," Mrs. Weasley said, floating some presents down to him.

Draco glanced up at her in surprise and she just smiled down at him before returning to her seat. They all took turns unwrapping gifts and talking about various things while the Quidditch game played in the background.

When it was time to go, both Harry and Draco were exhausted, but content and they both had a small bundle of gifts to take home.

"Hey next year you guys should come on Christmas Eve and you can stay over," Ginny said.

"Yeah! And you can both totally sleep in Ronniekin's room," George said with a grin.

Ron punched him in the arm. Harry gave Neville and Luna a hug before giving everyone else a hug goodbye. When it came to Ron, he smiled at the red-head first. Ron looked sheepishly down and then walked over and gave him a one-armed hugged.

"Thanks for coming," Ron said, after a pause. "Sorry about, you know…"

Harry smiled. "It's okay. I understand. We'll have to catch up again soon."

Ron smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We're still taking Cyprian to the next Quidditch World Cup, right?"

"Yeah, I promised him that. Actually, Draco and I have the tickets already. We got really good seats."

"How good?" Ron asked.

"Oh, you know, second row."

"Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed in excitement.

"Ronald, watch your tongue," Mrs. Weasley shouted from the living room.

"All right!" Ron exclaimed. "It's going to be bloo—I mean, wicked awesome!"

Harry laughed and nodded. "See you later."

They said their goodbyes and went back home. After changing into pajamas they collapsed on the couches. Draco was rummaging through his gifts.

"So, you had fun?" Harry asked.

Draco smiled and then shrugged. "Not bad."

Harry smiled and then gazed at the fire flickering nearby. After a moment he got up and walked over to the couch Draco was on. The blond glanced up at him as he approached. Harry climbed over the couch arm and pressed his body close to Draco's. He rested his forehead against Draco's cheek. Draco adjusted his position so his arm wrapped around him. The warmth from the fire was soothing as well as listening to Draco's breathing as he looked through his gifts. Eventually, Harry closed his eyes and fell asleep.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_7 months later…_

Harry zoomed across the sky as the sun set ahead of him. Draco was close by on his broom as well. They were headed toward their next assignment, which was on beautiful Big Island Hawaii. They zoomed over crystal clear waters and sandy beaches to the Volcano National Park, which was an extraordinary amount of scenic landscapes with lava tubes, waterfalls, gorgeous mountainous hills and cliffs, and much more. They landed nearby a waterfall and shrank their brooms.

"It should be nearby. Dimitri said it loves these kinds of waterfalls."

Draco nodded.

Harry turned to him. "You okay? You've been pretty silent like all day."

"I'm fine," Draco said.

Harry stared at him for a minute before settling down onto the rocky edge just above the waterfall. He stared out at the vast beautiful landscape as the sky changed to pinks and purples. A soft breeze was blowing, too, making it even more relaxing.

"So…did Alia and Trenton contact you?"

"Yeah," Harry said, glancing at him. "It's a boy."

Draco nodded.

"What about you?"

"My mum said it's a girl."

"A girl?" Harry asked, surprised. He laughed. "Lucius must be throwing a fit right now. He was so adamant about calling it a 'he'. Maybe a girl will do him so good."

Draco smiled. "Yeah."

"What's her name?"

"Kaia," Draco said. "What's his name?"

"Davon."

Draco sighed. "This is just weird."

Harry laughed. "I know."

They were both silent for a minute. Draco then came to sit near him.

"So, is it weird that Ginny's getting married?"

Harry smiled. "No. I'm happy for her. I'm glad we were able to stay friends."

Draco nodded. "I, you know, was thinking of asking for my favor now."

Harry glanced at him in amusement. "It's only taken you, what, almost a year?"

Draco just glanced away.

"Well?" Harry asked.

"Would you…," Draco trailed off.

Harry raised an eyebrow in response.

Draco slowly turned to face him. "My favor is…a Coventus ritual?"

Harry glanced at him and noticed that Draco didn't keep their gaze.

"What's that?"

Draco shook his head. "Never mind. I'll tell you later."

"What? Just tell me now."

Draco still wouldn't look at him. "No. Let's focus on the assignment."

Harry sighed irritably. "Fine."

The assignment itself didn't take very long. Harry wished they could've stayed there longer. When he got back he went over to the Weasleys while Draco was taking a shower. Ron wasn't there, but Ginny was.

"Hey, Harry," she said, smiling. "What brings you by?"

"Just a question, and to say hi," he said, giving her a hug.

"Sure, what's your question."

"What's a Coventus ritual?" Harry asked curiously.

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "You really don't know?"

"I wish people would stop looking at me like that. There's still a lot I need to learn about the wizard world," Harry said.

Ginny smiled. "I know. Well, it's what wizards do when they want to unify themselves."

"Unify?"

"You know, binding themselves with another."

Harry gave her a confused look.

"It's the equivalent of what muggles do when they have marriage proposals, you know, so – Harry? Are you okay?"

Harry's eyes were wide and he just stared straight ahead.

Ginny cupped a hand over her mouth. "Oh my…did Draco ask you to do the ritual?"

Harry just numbly nodded his head. Ginny squealed. "Congrats, Harry! What did you tell him?"

"Nothing! I asked what it was and he wouldn't tell me," Harry said.

"Don't you remember a couple months ago when I told you Triton and I were going through a ceremony?"

Harry blinked. "It was that union or marriage ritual?"

Ginny nodded. "Yes! The wedding part of it comes later, but the actual ritual is what the actual marriage part is."

"What does it do?"

"It leaves a mark on the skin, wherever you want it. It's like a vow, but nothing like an Unbreakable Vow. And so whenever you think about it, your mark can appear, if it's visible, so other people can see. The most common place is around the wrist. That's where I have mine, see?"

Ginny held out her wrist. Harry watched in awe as words appeared around her wrist, rotating like a sentence. It was glittery and was apparently Triton's vow of love for her. Then it vanished.

"So you don't exchange rings?"

"Rings are part of the marriage ceremony as more of a gesture, but that's not what people look for to see if you're really unified with someone. I know muggles use rings as their sign of marriage, but for wizards and witches it's the vow of love from the ritual that you carry," Ginny explained.

Harry nodded. "Wow."

"Well, what are you doing here? Go back home!" She exclaimed, shoving him out the door.

Harry went back to Grimmauld Place still stunned. When he entered he heard Draco in the kitchen. Harry slowly walked into it and saw him rummaging around for food. Draco glanced up when he walked in.

"Where'd you go off to?"

"Just taking a short flight," Harry said, biting his lip.

Draco raised an eyebrow but didn't comment further. He then began to prepare a meal.

"So, um, yes," Harry said.

Draco glanced up at him. "What?"

"Yes," Harry said, as Draco gave him a puzzled look. Harry felt his cheeks flush. "I'll do the Coventus ritual with you."

The piece of meat in Draco's hand fell to the table.

"You…know what it is?"

Harry nodded. "I had to figure it out for myself, no thanks to you, but, yeah."

Draco glanced downward awkwardly. They both were silent for a second.

"So that's really what you're using as your favor? I don't think that counts," Harry joked.

Draco snorted. "Yeah, well, I thought I'd give it a try."

"Why? You thought I'd say no?" Harry asked.

Draco shrugged. "I don't know where you stand on the whole marriage thing, you know, after what happened with Ginny."

"It wasn't the marrying part with Ginny; it was just that I had lost romantic feelings for her. Part of it was also the idea of having children. I just couldn't see myself as the family kind of guy, you know. As much as I've always wanted a family, I'm used to hardships and just looking out for myself and my friends."

"And the next danger around the corner," Draco added.

Harry gave him a lopsided smile. "I guess we both have that in common. I wonder what that says about us."

"That our childhoods were tragic."

Harry laughed. "That's true. Even now I don't really visit Teddy. I feel like I should, though, you know, to support Remus."

"I suppose you could always invite Teddy to play with Davon," Draco suggested.

"Yeah, I could try that," Harry said. "So…how does the ritual work?"

Draco stood up and gave him a sultry smile. "We can do that tomorrow."

Harry raised an eyebrow but didn't question it further.

The next morning, Draco took him back to the place in Hawaii that he had liked from their last assignment. They chose the top of the waterfall where they had sat previously. Harry nervously turned to Draco. The blond slowly moved forward until they were inches apart.

Draco held out his hand and Harry reached up to take it.

"So, we both make our vows and then we just…," Draco gestured with his hand.

"Say a spell?" Harry finished.

Draco nodded nervously. "Yeah. You say _Coventus Pactum_."

Harry glanced downward briefly. He opened his mouth to start, but to his surprise Draco started.

"Harry," he said, as Harry gazed up at him, "I know that we haven't always gotten along, and we still don't always get along, but despite that and even despite all that's happened this year, I know I couldn't have gotten through it without you."

Harry felt himself smiling.

Draco's cheeks flushed. "And I don't want to do it without you, the assignments, holidays, everything. I've never really had friends, not in the way that you have. I feel like you're the first real friend I've had, and you're the first, and only, person that I want to be with."

Draco then stopped. His cheeks were red.

Harry smiled and tightened his grip on Draco's hand. "Draco, we were rivals once, and I used to think that I hated when you'd challenge me, but to be honest you pushed me. You pushed me harder than anyone and I think because of that I was a little more prepared for the obstacles I had to go through. I know we've both made mistakes, and I'm sure we'll make a lot more, but I'm glad that I got a chance to know you and to see how amazing you really are. I'm also glad that you've been by my side through everything, through finally defeating Voldemort and through all our assignments and even saving Cyprian. I know I have great friends, but what I have with you is something more. I've never had that with anyone. And, I don't want it to end."

Draco smiled back and glanced downward briefly in embarrassment. They both then looked at one another and simultaneously said the spell. Instantly, their vows circled in tiny moving words around their wrists, looking almost like a moving tattoo. Then after a minute they vanished.

"That's it?" Harry asked.

Draco snorted. "Yeah. Why? You wanted something more?"

"No. So, what happens if people don't want to be together anymore?" Harry asked.

Draco glanced up at him.

"Not that I'm saying that for us!" Harry exclaimed quickly. "I'm just curious."

Draco snorted. "I know you can't live without me."

Harry glared. "I have no sympathy for you right now."

Draco ignored his comment. "They just undo the spell. It's not permanently binding like an Unbreakable Vow."

"I see," Harry said. "Wow. That certainly makes divorce a lot simpler."

Draco raised an eyebrow in response. Harry glanced down at his wrist. He thought about the vow and it suddenly appeared again briefly. He smiled down at it and when he looked up Draco was leaning towards him. The blond trailed his fingers up through Harry's hair as he kissed him. Harry wound his arms around Draco tightly as he deepened their kiss. Draco began unbuttoning his shirt. Harry trailed his fingers down Draco's back and lifted his shirt up. They both tossed their shirts to the side and came back together passionately.

Draco's fingers slid down underneath Harry's waistband and rubbed just above his groin. Harry groaned in the back of his throat. Draco yanked his jeans down and then gripped his rear, massaging it gently. Harry unbuttoned Draco's jeans and began sliding them down. The blond stepped out of them just as Harry kicked his jeans to the side. Draco pushed their bodies up together. He slid his fingers below Harry's boxers caressing him. Harry tilted his head back and moaned softly. Harry's fingers trailed up Draco's thigh toward his groin. Harry traced across the blond's arousal. Draco moaned and yanked Harry's boxers down before he took his own boxers off.

The second that their naked bodies touched, they both groaned. When Harry opened his eyes, he gasped. Their vows were circling around their entire bodies, the words moving across their skin. Draco caught sight of it too and just grinned. Their lips touched again and Harry parted his lips beneath Draco's. The blond slowly caressed his lips with his own, tilting his head for a better angle. After a second, Draco slid his tongue inside Harry's mouth. Draco's hands trailed to beneath Harry's rear and he lifted him up a few inches off the ground, carrying him back toward the tree wall of the cliff behind them. Draco pressed him up against the cold concrete and settled between his legs. Gradually, Draco pushed inside of him. Harry groaned loudly, tightening his grip around the blond.

Draco moaned and bent down to kiss him again. Both their arms were wound around each other and their lips roved passionately together as Draco pulled back and pushed back in. Harry moaned from the back of his throat every time Draco moved. The thrusts were deep but steady and Harry felt his back moving against the wall every time Draco pushed back in. Their moans echoed around them as the sun glistened down upon them. Harry trailed his fingers through Draco's hair as he kissed him, sliding his tongue along Draco's bottom lip before the blond captured his lips again.

For a little while they moaned breathlessly, rocking back and forth with the motion. Harry felt his climax building and he broke the kiss, pushing Draco tight against him. Their cheeks were touching as they both moaned. Draco thrust several more times before Harry felt him climax. As Draco moaned, placing a hand by Harry's head, Harry opened his eyes, watching as their vows circled up their bodies and suddenly vanished after reaching their heads. That, coupled with Draco's moans and thrusting, made Harry finally reach his climax.

They both stood gasping for breath afterwards. For several minutes they both stayed in each other's embrace with the warm sun shining over them. Draco slowly backed away until he was staring at him directly.

"I love you, too," Draco said quietly.

Harry's eyes widened slightly. He was so caught off-guard he didn't say anything for several seconds. He just stared at Draco as if he had imagined it. Finally, Harry pulled him close and kissed him. Their lips roved passionately together for a while before they finally broke apart. Harry smiled at him and Draco, whose cheeks were still flushed, glanced away briefly before finding his wand and waving it over their bodies. Once they were dressed, they made their way home.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_3 years later…_

Time passed by relatively fast. Harry and Draco had gained enough publicity that reporters from all over were trying to interview them. Thankfully, with Kingsley's help, they maintained their privacy. Dimitri had come out with his special volume, which had been extremely successful. Both the Ministry of Ireland and the Ministry of Scotland, along with the Ministry of Britain all came together to support the study of the new creature, the Veluferia Potenium.

Alia and Trenton had visited Harry with his (partly) son, who had the same dark green eyes that he had. He had brown hair like Trenton and Alia and had his mother's face too, but both Alia and Trenton were happy about Davon having his green eyes. Draco's daughter looked like the spitting image of him. She had beautiful long blonde hair and silver-gray eyes. Although she had Astoria's bone structure in her face, she still resembled Draco quite a bit, and according to Narcissa she had quite a personality and wouldn't take crap from anyone, including Lucius.

One afternoon as Harry was hanging with Ali and Trenton with Davon, they were walking in Hogsmeade and Harry stopped suddenly when he saw Draco walking with Narcissa, Astoria and what must have been Draco's daughter, Kaia. Harry came up to them and they all introduced one another. Harry noticed instantly the way Kaia smiled at Davon. The two seemed to click instantly and Alia and Trenton agreed to make a playdate together with Narcissa and Astoria for the children.

Ron had finally begun to accept Draco, although they still argued all the time. Cyprian had calmed down a lot and had begun to date Ronan, who was pretty much the opposite of him and yet they seemed to click nicely. Ginny and Triton had married and both Draco and Harry had been there for the wedding ceremony. Mrs. Weasley had practically cried when she found out Harry and Draco had done the Coventus ritual.

Ron and Hermione were finally engaged and after having performed the ceremony as well were planning a wedding in Australia with Ron's whole dragon team. Harry and Draco planned on flying in to be a part of that and to see everyone there again.

After a long day of shopping to find something nice to wear to Ron and Hermione's wedding, Harry and Draco went home and collapsed on the couches.

"I can't believe how fast time is going by," Harry said, sighing contently.

Draco shrugged. "It doesn't seem that bad to me."

Harry glanced over at him and saw him twirling his wand above his head. Smiling, Harry got up off his couch and squeezed in next to Draco on his couch.

"I'm glad our children get along. Wow. That sounds weird," Harry said, crinkling his nose.

Draco made a face. "Yeah, it does. At least we both won't be the last of our bloodline."

Harry smiled. "That's true. And I'm glad that Teddy can spend time with them, too."

"He seems to really like you."

"Yeah, he's a sweet kid," Harry said.

Draco turned his head to gaze at him. Their noses were inches apart.

"Have you been feeling weird at all?"

Harry gazed back at him. "You mean the moonstone? No. Actually, I've felt pretty great."

"You mean after taking that flower that we all risked our lives to get?"

Harry gave him a look. "Hilarious. Not just that. I felt a lot better after the moonstone actually transfigured with me when I turned into my Animagus form. I think now that it's a part of me, it doesn't put such a strain."

Draco made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat. "Well, you should still be careful."

Harry smiled. "I will."

"I'm glad you didn't turn into a vampire."

Harry laughed. "Really? But then we could spend an _eternity_ together."

Draco's eyes widened. "Gee, as much as I like you, I think that would be too much."

"Agreed," Harry said.

They both lay there in a comfortable silence.

"We still haven't had much luck finding anything on that mythological griffin," Harry said.

Draco snorted. "Well, we've got the rest of our careers and lives. Wouldn't want to rush it. Poor Dimitri thinks that our regular assignments are too boring now. Just wait. He's going to send us on something ridiculous soon."

Harry smiled. "Yeah. I'm glad everything turned out okay. Even Lucius has seemed to calm down, according to your mum."

"That could just be because he's got his wand back, with probations."

Harry shrugged. "I think Kaia keeps him in line."

Draco smirked. "I think so, too."

Harry twirled the ring around his finger. Draco had upgraded the ring he had gotten him for his birthday a few years ago into an even more stunning ring that shimmered like mica. Draco, too, had one on his finger. Draco had bought the rings a month after they had done the Coventus ritual, and they had had a little ceremony inside Grimmauld Place. The look on Kreacher's face as he had been part of the ceremony had been priceless. Narcissa had come to show her support, but of course Lucius hadn't bothered to show up. Ron, Hermione, Luna, Neville, Ginny and Triton had been there as well as the rest of the Weasley family. Surprisingly, Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Malfoy got along rather well.

Harry wrapped his arms even tighter around Draco and rested his head against his.

"I finally know what my favor is," Draco said.

Harry snorted and then glanced up at him. "Okay. What is it?"

Draco turned to him and smiled softly. "Love me forever."

Harry's lips curled upward in a smile. "I can do that."

Leaning forward Harry kissed him gently, relishing in warmth and comfort he felt. The butterflies stirred in his stomach and he knew that they would probably celebrate intimately before going to sleep, especially now that they both shared Draco's bedroom upstairs, which they had expanded to make a double master bedroom. Harry's room was the guest room for the times that any of his friends wanted to stay over.

As they broke apart, they both gazed in each other's eyes momentarily. Draco wrapped his other arm around Harry as well and Harry sighed into his embrace. After everything they had been through together, and even before that with the war and with Voldemort, they finally had their happily ever after.

_**THE END. **_

**Author's Note:** Thank you to everyone who reviewed and stayed with me from beginning to end! And thank you to any new reviewers who have just come across this! Hopefully after 37 pages everything's been tied up in a neat little bow, lol! I honestly didn't expect the epilogue to be this long, but I hope you all enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think! If you have any other questions, you can always go to my profile and e-mail me directly. Thanks!

_~Angelic Candy _

TO REVIEWERS:

**EllenZzzz:** Hey! Yeahhhhhh, he did give his sperm away, but at least Harry will live on in the next generation, right? =) I know some people do the whole male pregnancy thing, but I don't really find that realistic so I thought this was the best way to have the best of both worlds. I hope you liked the ending! Yeah, I'm sad it's ended now because it was fun to write. Awwwww, well great! I do hope you want to read it over again. That's always the best feeling for an author to hear that. Thanks so much for reviewing!

**AFLlover:** Aww thanks so much! Yeah, I'm sad it has to end, too. It was fun writing. I really hope you liked the ending! Thanks for reviewing! =)

**yoshi vega: **Aww thanks! I'm so glad you liked it! And I really hope you liked how it ended too! I know it was a long ending, but hopefully all your questions have been answered. Awwwwww, you're so sweet! I would love to give you a copy! =) Hopefully I do get published one day. My goal is to have it done by the spring. Thanks for reviewing!

**Gryffindor** **Rat**: Lol! Yes, I'm sorry if what Harry and Draco did with their sperm was a little unnerving to you, but that's how I pictured it ending. I didn't want them both to be the end of their lines, you know. Awww, glad you liked that small tiny plant in the garden. That's why I love details because sometimes even the smallest details can make a difference. I really hope that you enjoyed the ending. I'm sad, too, that it had to end, but sadly it couldn't go on forever. Thank you for reviewing! =)


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